On Silver Wings
by Darkness's Blade
Summary: He had lost everything in one night. His home, his family, everything in his world shattered. Saved by the Legendary Sephiroth, all he could do was move forward, following in the legend's footsteps. Set before and during Crisis Core. Character Development. HIATUS
1. Chapter 1: That First Night

The power of Soldier; the power to turn the tide in any battle, defeat any enemy, save anyone who needed to be saved. Soldier, the title of heroes; at least, that's what Jay thought when he saw a Soldier member in action. During the days of his childhood, he lived in a middle of nowhere village, it was simple and small yet it was home. The name of the village escaped Jay as a child, back in those days he melded with the villagers. The villagers either farmed or just layed about, there was nothing exciting this far out of Midgar. The only thing that was noteworthy about the village was the mako spring that was a little ways out the village, children were forbidden to go but that barely stopped the braver children.

One day, a large convoy of trucks and construction vehicles paraded through the village wearing the Shinra Electric Company logo. Jay was sitting outside his small one story house when they rolled passed his house and one of the men announced they'd be building a reactor near the mako spring. The man advised that no one should approach the mako spring since their building could attract monsters so it could be considered dangerous if they approached the site. By the time Jay was seven, the reactor was finished and he remembered looking up to the lights at night, marveling how pretty their emeralds lights were. It wasn't long until the monsters came, they generally remained out of the village but that soon changed.

Jay remembered that morning, his parents were packing up and they were about to go to Midgar, he remembered walking up to the front door with his mom's hand in his. His house rumbled, the living room behind him caught fire from a hole in the ceiling. His father tried pushing him and his mother out the burning house before an explosion blew the three of them out the house. Jay's mother rolled her body around her child while his father did the same around his mother. When Jay awoke he was lying in a sticky pool under a heavy mass, the sky was red as smoke from the village. He turned his head to the right to see his father lying unnaturally still next to him, he tried to reach out and get up from under the weight on top of him but a low raspy voice stopped him.

"Stay still my son, just sit here until it's all over." Jay looked up to see his mom looking down at him, her black hair cascaded onto the ground and in his face. Her face was very pale with a thin line of blood running down from her mouth, her eyes were looking hollow like it was a battle for her to keep them open. Jay couldn't speak, it was like that explosion blew out his voice box, all he could do was stare and tighten his hands around his mother on top of him. He heard monsters running past him and his parents going after anyone who made a sound, the village was filled with the screams of the dying until it fell silent.

Slowly Jay nudged his mother a few times, but she did not respond, he tried harder but she just remained quiet. Getting up from under her, he tried shoving her lightly to wake her up but she was as still as the grave. It was in that moment that it dawned on Jay, his parents were dead and they weren't coming back. Tears started to build up in his eyes as he started to shove them roughly, almost desperately, until he started to cry. His sobs attracted a winged beast to him, its humanoid purple body was almost red with blood covering it from head to toe and its teeth had a bone in them. Snapping the bone in half the creature charged towards Jay who had no time to scream before getting eaten. His screams filled the air as the creature fell behind him cut perfectly in half from head to waist, blood splattered in front of the black mass that appeared in front of him. When he realized that the creature was dead his screams ceased and he looked up to see a silver curtain being directed from the black mass. The silver curtain swayed before it revealed two emerald eyes staring eerily into Jay's brown eyes. With no words the emerald eyes walked away from the boy deeper into the burning village.

Instinctively, Jay grabbed the black mass by the edge causing the pair of emerald eyes and the silver curtain to stop. He pointed towards his parents with a pleading expression but silver curtain started walking again making Jay let go. "They're gone, if you wish to join them, stay here, if you wish to walk out of this hell follow me and leave them behind." The words were low yet thundering to the boy, he was being forced to choose; stay with his parents and die or leave with the silver curtain and abandon them. He watched the silver curtain become fainter and fainter as it approached the flames, he then looked back to his parents whose bodies were about to catch fire. Staying for one last moment, and watching the flames consume his parents, Jay ran after the silver curtain.

Through the flames, bodies, and the ashes of his old life he remained behind the silver curtain until they reached an armored convoy that had two large men looking down at him. One was dressed in a red long overcoat with black shoulder pads, on his head was a mop of brown hair that perfectly framed his face. The other was dressed in all black with black hair brushed back and a massive sword on his back was visible from the red hilt sticking out over his shoulder and the blade out from the side of his leg.

"Sephiroth, what was the situation of your area of the mission zone, any more fiends in the vicinity?" The man with massive sword spoke in a professional tone that screamed authority in its calm voice. "All enemies have been eliminated, there is, however, one survivor." With that the silver curtain identified as Sephiroth moved to the side to reveal a burnt and torn Jay. Both the men in red and black had their eyes widened as they looked at each other for a moment before looking back towards the child. The one in black stepped forward before kneeling down to be eye level with Jay, and he adopted a fatherly tone. "Hello, my name is Angeal, can you tell me your name?" The boy stared back at him with hollow eyes, there was no light in his eyes just the void that the fire had left that used to be his life. Jay remained silent as Angeal knelt in front of him awaiting an answer. "We need to know your name so we can notify your next of kin and send you to them, surely they'll be worried when they hear of this." Still Jay remained silent, just staring into Angeal's eyes with a vacant expression. It was at that moment the man in red choose that moment to speak in his velvet voice that oozed sarcasm and arrogance.

"Maybe such a tragedy has left the boy scarred, perhaps he should've just remained with the village if he's already dead on the inside." Angeal's head whipped back to the man in red and was about to scold him for saying such things but Sephiroth chose that time to intervene. "Genesis, if he was truly dead on the inside, he wouldn't have followed me through all of it, and my word isn't enough, why not look into his eyes now?" Both Genesis and Angeal turned towards the boy to see anger in his eyes that was directed at Genesis, it seems he didn't like his comment. Before either could say anything about this recent development, Sephiroth took a step forward until he towered over Jay and looked down at him. "Now, you will tell us your name so we can send you off to your next of kin." Sephiroth's voice lacked the fatherly tone Angeal took and Genesis's arrogance, it was low and sounded like a command, one in which Jay couldn't stop himself from disobeying.

"My name is Jay Lirim, and I have no family, they were all burned away." His voice was grave yet had strength to it. Angeal and Genesis shared a look again as Sephiroth had a ghost of a smile on his face before turning on his heel and walked towards a nearby helicopter. "If that's true then Angeal will probably put you in a foster home or you can follow me and obtain the strength to stop this from happening again. If you wish for a semblance of a normal life then stay with Angeal but coming with me means there is no turning back and you will have many trials. It will be hard and I do not waste my time, so you must do everything I say to perfection or not at all." As Sephiroth boarded the helicopter, he was pleased when he felt a small body sitting next to him looking straight ahead. Angeal and Genesis boarded the helicopter across from them and looked at their friend's new follower. His eyes now burned with new purpose but there were also tears streaming from his face, no snot, or sniffles just a continuous stream that showed he mourned the loss of his old life.

 **Hope you enjoyed the prologue, drop a favorite and review, the more reviews I get the faster I'll update**


	2. Chapter 2: Preparing to Fly

Twelve long years had passed since that day, twelve years of living inside Shinra, training, growing stronger, all of it culminating to one day. The day Jay would take the Soldier exam, it's been the one thing on his mind since he gained his new life. He had no other distractions, just doing as he was told and refining his intellect or skills when he had extra time. The only hobby that Jay had picked up that wasn't vital to his success was Sephiroth, he studied everything on the legendary Soldier Hero. At first it had been just what little background information Jay had access to, then it branched out to the hero's techniques, strategies, skills; even studied his signature sword, Masamune.

Whenever Jay had combat practice with melee weapons, he'd always wield a katana; a testament to the hero who gave him purpose. In the beginning he was sloppy, barely defeating his opponent while taking too many hits, however as time went by he became almost untouchable. His style of fighting wasn't as refined as Sephiroth; who used his sword's impressive length to give him an extra reach on his opponent with his strikes while using his formidable strength and reflexes to block almost every attack that headed his way. There was, however, one key difference in the style Jay used when compared to Sephiroth, instead of having a free hand to push his opponent or add more force to his sword with two handed swings, Jay used two katanas instead of one.

Jay was dominant in his right hand so his right katana imitated Sephiroth's style and technique, while his left one would exploit any weakness he'd see. Offensively, his speed and force behind his blows would leave most opponents unable to counterattack from the onslaught, however his defense suffered. Sephiroth's style worked best for him due to the amount of strength he could put in his sword when he blocked, he also had a free hand to reinforce his sword if the attack was too heavy for only one hand. Jay did not possess his strength plus he did not have a free hand to help defend against heavy blows. To counter this, Jay trained to increase his speed and reflexes, as he studied Sephiroth, was surprisingly his lowest point. Sephiroth was fast without a doubt, however any injury he'd ever obtain was attributed to him not reacting fast enough. He had the speed to compensate for this weakness however, it didn't change the fact that his reflexes, as amazing as they are, were still his weakest attribute.

He obtained this secret when he turned seventeen and for the next four years, added an extra workout to hone reflexes. Now at twenty one years old he could remain unscratched while fighting multiple opponents, complete obstacle courses with surprising scores, and minimize an opportunity for rubber bullets to hit him. Overall his specialty was speed with his strength coming second and defense trailing last, however when compared to the others he was in a class of his own.

Throughout the years Sephiroth rarely visited, and whenever he did it was only for a few minutes of him reviewing his pupil's progress then leaving. Most of the time Jay wouldn't even see him, others they wouldn't even talk to one another, not that either were adept conversationalists. It wasn't until Sephiroth walked into his quarters that all of Jay's expectations flew out the window, Sephiroth never entered his personal quarters. He'd always be in the administrator's office or walking down some hallway to get somewhere, usually with a report in his hand; now he was just standing in Jay's doorway with his hands at his side.

Sephiroth watched the young man with black moderately spiky hair rush to his feet at attention in front of his desk where he seemed to be reading something. The Soldier member smiled slightly before walking past him and observing what his pupil was reading, he wasn't surprised to find another detailed report on him. "Studying me again, I see." Jay made no comment as Sephiroth lightly flipped through the report before returning it to its original page then turning to the young man. With a wave of his hand Jay relaxed and sat on the bed next to his desk looking up to Sephiroth who towered over him. "Imitating my style will only take you so far, when you face a superior opponent, you won't be able to win with a style you did not develop yourself. You'll be too caught up in wondering what'd I'd do and open yourself up to an attack that will be fatal." Jay nodded in understanding, little did Sephiroth know, he was developing his own style, he may have kept his left katana behind his back and rarely use it but he was developing a dual style of fighting against human opponents while using only one sword with monsters.

"In other matters, it has come to my attention that your Soldier examination is coming up, it'd be a shame if you were to fail now of all times." Jay's eyes narrowed as Sephiroth said the comment lightly as if he was commenting on the weather. "I will not fail." The Soldier Hero smirked at the strong resolve his pupil's voice radiated.

"That's what I expected to hear, I've come to inform you that your examination will not be with the other candidates, I've made my own test that will determine if you will become not just a Soldier member, but one under my tutelage. Tomorrow morning you will report to the Soldier floor, I will be waiting for you in front of the training room. I suggest you get a goodnight's sleep because pass or fail you won't be sleeping for a period of time." With that, Sephiroth walked out of Jay's room, not even so much as a 'good luck' but there was no such thing as luck when Sephiroth was around, just skill.

Jay went back to his desk to study more, but he found he couldn't focus on the text in front of him. It wasn't until he turned the page on the report he realized his hands were shaking, his heart started to speed up.

I've made my own test that will determine if you become not just a Soldier member, but one under my tutelage.

Jay was resolved not to fail, that was certain but hearing Sephiroth say he had his own test just for him, unnerved him. The Soldier Hero expected perfection, from himself, other Soldier members, anyone in his presence was expected to carry out their task perfectly. Any input that Sephiroth had on any assessment usually spelled failure for a great many candidates but an entire test made just by him was unheard of. Jay was confident in all of his aspects but with Sephiroth coming in his room and commenting on his fighting style, he felt himself on his feet throwing on tennis shoes and walking towards the training area.

Soldier members were the only ones with access to the training room on the Soldier floor and they had to accompany anyone wanting to use the training room, everyone else had access to the numerous ones found around the building. They weren't extravagant but they had the basic necessity of any gym complete with many weight machines and as a special feature they could create a virtual opponent for training. It wasn't as immersive as the one on the Soldier floor that changed the landscape and one could actually travel about in the simulation, it had just the single virtual opponent. Walking into the training room and heading towards the back where the simulator was running, he saw that it was already in use. A chestnut wavy haired woman was fighting a simulation of an elite Wutai unit that Jay remembered them being called the Crescent Unit. The simulation was dressed in grey armor with plates and its unique helmet while armed with the standard issue rifle-axe native to Wutai. The woman was dressed in a dark blue sports bra with black shorts that ended at her mid thighs with fingerless gloves and a band on her forearm.

The woman ducked under another slash while pirouetting and kicking the back of the simulation's knees causing its legs to buckle. Raising her right foot she slammed it down on the Wutainese weapon, embedding it into the ground before she swung her left leg at the simulation's head. Ducking under the kick, the simulation used both arms to lift its weapon out of the ground to unbalance the woman, but was caught off guard when the woman wrapped her leg around the back of the simulation's neck. Jumping off her right foot, she brought her right leg up to the front of the simulation's neck while putting her waist on its right shoulder and with her arms, grabbed its left arm. Then with a violent twist of her waist towards the ground, the simulation was sent flying into the ground while having its neck in between her thighs and locked in an arm bar. Holding its arm down with one arm she reached into the band on her forearm and pulled out a phone, clicking buttons a few times, the simulation stopped struggling and shut down before dissolving into green cubes.

Jay watched the display in silence, absorbing the sight of the woman's flawless takedown and the way she made it look effortlessly. He watched her walk to water bottle and towel then wipe sweat off her brow while taking a swig of water. "It's rude to stare you know?" Jay just blinked as the young woman turned towards him with an easy smile, but her eyes were different, he noticed she quickly scanned his body in an instant before looking into his eyes. Most would think she was checking him out but her eyes lingered on his hands, waist, and legs; all places that'd have easy access to a weapon. A tiny part of his brain expressed she was paranoid and tried to hide it with her smile, but at the front of his brain there was a more distinct thought. She's a professional. Jay hadn't seen her with the few cadets that were being trained in the Shinra building, he would've remembered the chestnut hair, so she probably wasn't a cadet. She couldn't be a Soldier member since she was using a regular training room, if she was an infantrywoman she'd be on some fort around Midgar, and Jay highly doubted she was a regular employee with fighting skills like that.

His train of thought was interrupted when a water bottle came flying towards his face with surprising speed. His hand snapped up to catch the bottle a few inches from his face, earning a chuckle from the woman. "Those are some really impressive reflexes, you managed bring your hand straight up in time to catch the water bottle by the middle from below it. That means you knew it was too close to attempt to catch it like a baseball, instead you threw your hand up at the same time as the bottle was right above it and catch it, all without taking a step I might add." She walked up to Jay and held her hand out as if she was expecting him to give her something. Mutely, Jay deposited the water bottle back into her hand and stared down to her scanning her features looking for any information on her that wasn't about her appearance.

"Judging from your eyes, you aren't a Soldier member and I know you aren't a Turk seeing as I would know you if you were, so the only thing you could be would a Shinra cadet. Black hair, tan skin, grey eyes, very fast reflexes; you wouldn't happen to be Jay Lirim, are you?" Jay's eyes slightly widened at the mention of his name from her voice while his brain quickly started processing the word Turk. What is a Turk, I've never heard of them here. Jay again, was back into the present world when the woman chuckled before putting on a shirt and started walking away.

"You need to pay more attention or you'll find yourself left behind, like you are now." When the young woman left the room, Jay looked at the door for a moment before rolling his eyes and walking towards the simulation. Left behind my ass. He pulled out his phone and setup the simulation with three Crescent Unit soldier, then got into his ready position.

 **Short chapter I know but I hope ya'll enjoyed it, I hope i can start going to 4k words per chapter so I can have more content I'll work on it. Please drop a follow and review and I'll update next Saturday, or earlier if I get a review. ;}**


	3. Chapter 3: Sephiroth's Test

The elevator ride to the SOLDIER floor was slow, to Jay it felt like hours before the doors opened and Sephiroth was leaning against a wall with his arms crossed. Next to him was Angeal who seemed to be conversing with the SOLDIER Hero. Striding out the elevator with his black combat boots and dark blue pants with a matching skin tight shirt that had the company logo on it. On his the shirt ended at his elbows while on his hands were fingerless gloves, the attire necessary for a combat challenge.

Angeal and Sephiroth turned to the cadet with wordless expressions, it seemed none of them were going to start the conversation. Jay squared his shoulders and straightened himself to look more presentable, "I am ready for my examination". Sephiroth made a small chuckle while Angeal looked uncomfortable. "That's good but we are waiting for one more person to help you take your exam and he seems to be a little late." Jay raised his eyebrow at Angeal's statement until he heard the sound of hurried footsteps behind him. Turning around he saw a guy that looked not much older than he rounding the corner on one foot rather comically and running towards them at full speed before skidding to a stop in front of them.

"Don't worry folks, SOLDIER 3rd Class Zack is on the job!" He stood tall with his left hand on his side and a thumb pointing to himself while showing off a row of sparkling teeth under a bright smile. He had on a SOLDIER'S uniform that consisted of a bright blue turtleneck and a matching set of baggy pants along with leather boots, gloves, and a belt held together by a pair of suspenders. A moment passed between the group with Sephiroth having a smirk on his face, Angeal having his face in his hand, and Jay fighting not to look dumbstruck. Who in the hell is this guy? It seemed the young man could feel the atmosphere around him and he lowered his hero pose and shuffled his feet before asking.

"I'm late aren't I?"

Sephiroth turned on his heel before gesturing for Jay to follow him into the simulation room. Following behind his role model, they left Angeal with the interesting young SOLDIER member. When the two of them were in the simulation room, Sephiroth slightly turned to Jay and looked at him from the corner of his eye. "So what did you think of Zack Fair, restless as a puppy that one, he's been in SOLDIER for only 6 months." Jay wanted to say he found him ridiculous and would ask how he could be in SOLDIER, the elite fighting force for Shinra, but kept his mouth shut.

It seemed Sephiroth could read his mind because he started to chuckle. "He may act unlike many SOLDIER members, but I suggest you focus, he'll be your opponent in this examination." Jay raised an eyebrow, he was fighting someone who couldn't get to a meeting on time plus he almost ran into a wall when he rounded that corner. There had to be a catch. Just as he was thinking that Zack and Angeal walked in behind them with the former rushing up to greet Jay, with his hand out. "Heya, my name is Zack Fair member of SOLDIER, and aspiring to be a hero. What's your name?"

Jay looked at the hand for a moment before raising his eyes towards Zack's mako blue ones, when it became apparent that Jay wouldn't be shaking his hand, he dropped it slowly with a curious look on his face. Angeal walked in Zack into the simulation room and propped himself up against a wall as Sephiroth joined him by his side. Taking out his phone he punched in a few keys and the entire room lit up in green cubes until it subsided into a lush green field. In front of Jay were two thin swords, they had a grey rectangular guard with a double edge blade each. Picking them up, Jay got into a fighting stance while Zack drew his standard issue SOLDIER sword.

A moment passed before both of them rushed forward and met in flurry of steel. Jay took stabs at Zack with his right sword while keeping the other behind his back, mimicking Sephiroth's one handed style, however all he met was air. Zack may have acted clumsy but his fighting skills definitely weren't, the speed and dexterity he used to dodge Jay's attacks screamed natural talent from the SOLDIER 3rd class. When Zack swung at him, Jay was thrown back hard from the force of the swing. Instead he started to sidestep and dodge the swings as his speed was enough to keep up with the SOLDIER member.

When another a single slash met air, Jay decided that Sephiroth's style of attack wouldn't cut it against Zack. He pulled his second sword from behind his back before swinging both of them one after another, doubling his attack speed. Zack was forced to go onto the defensive while trying to parrying one blade and dodging another while throwing a punch or kick to destabilize his opponent.

Jay jumped back when he realized that his rapid attacks wouldn't get through Zack's defense, all it did was waste his stamina. He instantly regretted it when Zack jumped towards him with his sword coming up in an upward arc. Since Jay's feet was still off the ground he couldn't do anything but use both his swords together in an attempt to block the attack. When their blades connected he was sent flying from the force of the swing, Jay flipped his body so his feet could be planted against the ground to stop his flight. Zack however, didn't want to give them the chance as he kept advancing and knocking Jay off balance over and over.

Desperate to regain some sense of balance, Jay threw a sword directly at Zack's abdomen to get him to stop advancing. It didn't work however when he just turned his body to the side, with a grin on his face, Zack jumped up with his sword above his head ready to cleave down and end the fight. Driving his sword behind him, he kept his arm and sword straight and used it to stop himself while doing a backflip to get just out of range of Zack's swing. Dust and dirt flew into the air as the heavy swing impacted the ground blinding both combatants from the other. Zack jumped high into the air, then turned his body midair to add more momentum to his action as he spun his sword in a circle dispersing the dust cloud. Jay was out of the immediate vicinity retrieving his other sword before rushing Zack with two swords at his side.

They both met again in a flourish of steel, this time however, Jay added jumps to his attacks, to add more momentum and speed to his attacks to outmaneuver Zack. When, Jay ducked under a swing from the SOLDIER member and left a thin slice on Zack's abdomen as he managed to mostly get out of the sword's way. Not missing a beat, Zack threw a punch at Jay which hit his shoulder and an audible crack could be heard as his shoulder got dislocated. Jay, not being losing his head from the pain went with his body's jerk from the punch and kicked Zack on the side of his head gaining some distance.

Zack flipped and landed on his feet as Jay once again threw a sword at Zack's head. He moved his head to the side as the sword stuck itself into the ground and Jay rushed him with a useless arm and a single sword. Pushing off with his right leg, he flipped diagonally and had his foot flying towards Zack's face. The SOLDIER member used his elbow to take the hit as he stopped Jay's advance and used the opening to take a swing at Jay. The latter flipped his sword handle before grabbing the blade and using the handle, trapped Zack's sword before stabbing his sword into the ground, also grounding Zack's sword. Landing behind the SOLDIER member, he grabbed the sword handle and spun around to take swing at Zack.

Only to hit air again.

Surprise was shown on his face as he searched for the SOLDIER member and dread welled up in his gut when he felt a shadow above him. He looked up just in time to see Zack's foot step on his dislocated shoulder, bringing brain numbing pain to him and pinning him to the ground. He looked up to see a sword pointed at his throat and a triumphant cheerful smile on Zack's face.

"Well it looks like I won, you've got some nice moves there." Stepping back, Zack offered him a hand up. While Jay may have lost he couldn't help but feel some new found respect for the SOLDIER member. Taking his hand, Zack helped pull him up. Jay cradled his dislocated shoulder as Zack sheathed his sword and turned towards Angeal and Sephiroth who were walking towards them.

"Good job capitalizing on his injury Zack, in battle you need to find an opportunity to ensure victory, but remember; you must retain your SOLDIER honor." Zack chuckled a little bit as he turned to see Sephiroth walked over to the somewhat crestfallen Jay. Sephiroth had an amused expression on his face as Jay refused to look at him, shamed that he lost and failed his combat test.

"That was entertaining to watch, it seems you have your own unique style of fighting. It was very effective, against other SOLDIER 3rd class operatives you'd probably come out victorious. However, that's not the case now, you still lost, losing in SOLDIER generally means death as the enemy won't be as lenient as the puppy over there." Jay seemed to sulk even more, seeing this Zack was about to protest that Jay was incredible but Angeal put a hand of his shoulder to stop him. Sephiroth began walking past Jay before whipping out his hand and hitting his shoulder and knocking it back into its socket. Jay sucked in a curse of pain as Sephiroth turned off the simulation before stopping at the door and slightly turning his head toward Jay.

"Report to research department and ask for Hojo, he will be administering your SOLDIER procedure." Jay and Zack were stunned while Angeal had a small smile on his face. Seeing their confused facial expressions, Sephiroth smirked and decided to elaborate. "I never said you had to win your fight, the reason I asked for Zack was to put you against a superior opponent and see how you'd react. You figured out that Zack wasn't someone you go half strength as well as knowing you could outmaneuver him when he could overpower you. You also knew when to disengage and play on his fighting style, all of these were what I was looking for when you were fighting. Perhaps when you both make 1st we can see who was the better teacher, eh Angeal?"

Angeal walked past him with a smile clapped his shoulder before motioning Zack to follow him. The 3rd class gave Sephiroth a salute, while turning towards and Jay and holding his arm up in a friendly handshake manner. "I'm really looking forward to when we're first and see which one of us is the better hero." Jay made a slight smile and returned the gesture, then Zack and Angeal were gone. Sephiroth and Jay were the only two left in the simulation room, no words were exchanged between them just a smirk from Sephiroth and a nod from Jay.

 **Hey guys new chapter hope you enjoyed the battle between Zack and Jay I couldn't have him win against Zack as a regular person. Maybe in a couple years, anyway I hope ya'll like the chapter leave fav and review please**


	4. Chapter 4: Transformation

Jay rode the elevator down to the science department where Hojo would administer the Soldier process on him. It would change his body for the rest of his life in ways he could not imagine, most would be slightly afraid or excited for the opportunity. Jay treated it as one more chance to get closer to Sephiroth's level, strong enough he would never be that small boy he was when his village was attacked. The elevator stopped and when Jay stepped out a man wearing a scientist's coat walked past him in a hurry. He was round and had slim arms, his greying black hair framed the top corners of his tan aged face. His hair was short and only reached to the base of his neck, his silver eyes did not register the young man walking past him and into the elevator.

The soon-to-be Soldier member dismissed the man and looked toward the science department. The room was large and spacious with a massive see through chamber connecting with a catwalk to the rest of the room. The rest of the room was lined with tanks and complex machines. In the room was another scientist, who the way Jay perceived he wasn't completely sane. He was slowly waving his arms as he was reciting something, "Infinite in mystery, is the gift of the goddess, we seek it thus, and take to the sky. Ripples form on the water's surface the wandering soul knows no rest." After reciting that small scripture, the scientist lowered his arms and started laughing in a condescending manner that made Jay's skin crawl.

"Pure drivel."

Slowly he turned his head toward Jay and tilted it slightly while focussing his soulless eyes on the young man. "Are you my next Soldier guinea pig?" Jay simply nodded once, unfazed by the scientist gestures but in his mind he wondered how was this guy the head scientist. "Jay Lirim reporting for the Soldier entrance procedure."

Hojo gestured towards the chamber in the middle of the room, and typed in a few commands in the terminal and a table rose from the floor as well as the chamber opening up. Jay walked up into the chamber and immediately noticed that there were restraints on the table, all on joints of his body. He wouldn't be able to move at all, enhanced or not. Jay laid against the table and watched Hojo strap the restraint not remotely caring at the slight wince the he made. When he finished he clipped a small device onto Jay's pointer finger.

"This will monitor your vitals during the procedure, if they breach safety parameters I'm supposed to stop the procedure." Jay wanted to scoff, there was no way in hell this psycho was going to stop the procedure over his vitals, he wouldn't be surprised if he just preprogrammed the procedure and left him. Hojo walked back to the console and pulled up a clipboard that seemed to contain information on Jay.

"According to this your blood seems to be somewhat incompatible with Mako. Even though you have AB- blood and that in itself is very rare, there seems to be something else in your bloodstream that dilutes Mako. To combat this I plan to increase the dosage significantly so you can have the same potency as an average Soldier member without getting Mako poisoning." The Soldier candidate didn't say anything to the explanation and focused on relaxing his body and preparing himself. When Hojo heard nothing he retrieved a pair of metal goggles then walked back to Jay and then stopped before the young man.

"This is unprecedented, no one has come with so much resistance to Mako before, the blood type on its own breeds resistance to the procedure but for some reason there's something else in your bloodstream that causes even more resistance. So I am looking forward to seeing how your body reacts to such a dosage of concentrated Mako and if you will be more exceptional then the other failures." Failures? As far as he knew the majority of people who made it to this stage were successful in accepting the procedure and the very who couldn't undergo the process was due to being too susceptible to Mako and becoming ill from exposure.

Hojo put the metal goggles over Jay's head that completely blocked out his vision and left sound

as the only way he could perceive his surroundings. He could hear the mad scientist making his way back to the console and tapping a few buttons before flipping some type of switch. As soon as he heard the switch turn, his vision turned bright green as the Mako blinded his vision and the chamber doors closed and he could hear Mako seeping into room in gaseous form.

The humidity of the chamber started to rise as he felt himself sweat and the gas enveloped him. For a few moments everything seemed to be fine until he heard Hojo started to chuckle and say something. He couldn't hear very well due to the sounds around him but he managed to hear the end of what he said.

"Beginning analysis." As soon as those words registered in Jay's mind, his blood boiled. It wasn't in anger, it actually felt like all the blood in his body instantly made contact with extreme heat and was boiling in his blood vessels. Jay clenched his teeth to fight screaming in pain but he knew it wasn't going to last long before he crushed his teeth or his body would release his jaw against his will. The sensation continued for what seemed to be forever and Jay couldn't fight the urge to scream and used every once of air in his longs to show how much agony he was in all the while Hojo was furiously jotting down information on a notepad.

When the chamber became immersed in Mako green gas, Hojo couldn't see the specimen; not person, specimen. So he referred to console in front of him to keep track of the procedure. According to the console, the specimen refused to accept the Mako on skin contact so Hojo decided to raise the humidity to get his pores open and allow the gas to seep in more easily. There was one more complication however, instead of the Mako slightly altering the specimen's blood stream and circulating out of the body, the large amount of Mako heavily seeped into the specimen's bloodstream and refused to leave the host. It seems the specimen's resistance to Mako didn't only prevent the substance from seeping into the bloodstream, but it kept the substance from seeping out. In addition of the heavy Mako dosage the specimen should have a much higher potency than most of the failures in Soldier. In fact, by his calculations the specimen may have Mako levels comparable to the only success in the Soldier program: Sephiroth.

The procedure was beginning its final stages as the specimen's screaming died down causing Hojo to briefly check the heart monitor, still in safety parameters. He typed in a sequence into the console that made a small needle appear under the specimen and inject its contents into the host. After the syringe was empty the needle folded back into the table, and the Mako chamber started to suck up all the gas. When the chamber was empty and Hojo could see through the glass, he saw the specimen was breathing heavily on the table. According to the results on the console the procedure was a complete success, however there was one disappointment. The potency of Mako in the specimen's body was much lower than expected, nowhere near the result Hojo came to.

With a huff, Hojo threw aside the clipboard and type in a few commands into the console that opened the chamber doors. He walked into the chamber grumbling the entire the way as he began unhooking the failure from the table. First came the goggles then came the straps as the failure dropped to his knees, breathing heavily the failure could not form words or bring himself to stand on his two feet. "There have been many other failures who have been through the procedure and they all were able to get back up after. So quit embarrassing yourself and stand up."

Jay wanted nothing more than to knock the scientist teeth so far down his throat he'd need a toothbrush up his ass to brush them for that comment. He couldn't form any type of rebuttal and focused solely on getting back to his feet. Getting his knees under him, he pushed against them and managed to get his feet under him as he wobbly stood to his full height. His body felt light impeccably light, if he wasn't so tired he'd probably be able to jump as high as the ceiling with barely any effort. He walked over to the side of the chamber and used it to edge his way toward the opening where he walked along the platform using the railing as support. Hojo walked without looking back and stopped before his station typing in a few commands into the console.

"You should regain full mobility in a few moments, when you do you may return back to your quarters where I am obligated to tell you that you body needs at least two days of rest to recover. During these two days you should not do anything too strenuous as your body becomes acclimated to the sudden change." It seemed as if Hojo used a prerecorded message judging from the drone tone of his voice that seemed to have it said it a thousand times. Jay did some light stretches until he felt confident enough to walk back to his quarters in the Shinra building.

Slightly limping back to the elevator, he pressed the button to get to the living areas of the Shinra tower. As he walked out the elevator he gained a few curious stares as some of the occupants passed him by wondering why he was using the wall as support. Jay didn't give any of them a second thought as he finally reached his door and typed in code and unlocked his living quarters. It was small yet comfortable, it opened to a living room which had a kitchen and small dining area to its left. On its right was a opening that led to a single bedroom with a bathroom inside.

Jay walked into his bedroom and plopped on his modest bed and reached over to his nightstand to retrieve his phone. Checking it for any new messages, all he got was a single text message from Sephiroth.

 _Due to you becoming a Soldier member at an unusual time there will be no special ceremony for you. I will also not be able to train with you as I had originally planned due to a mission I'm going on. Tomorrow, you will go to the Soldier floor at 8:30 and check in with inventory to get your standard issue equipment. When I return I expect no excuse as to why you aren't ready to begin your Soldier training._

Jay closed his phone and placed it back on the nightstand, and leaned his head back into his pillow. He got up at 6:30 today to start it off and prepare and just finished it at noon. That test with Zack as well as his procedure drained him and made him want nothing more than to shut his brain off and allow his body the luxury of relaxing for a few hours that came with sleep. He closed his eyes and let it wander for a moment just thinking about previous days before his world went completely black.

Sephiroth was making his way toward the chopper on the roof of the Shinra building which would bring him to the site of his mission: Wutai. There had been a few strange reports in the region that piqued his interest, so interesting that he _informed_ the director that he'd be leaving for a few days to Wutai. The director warned the Soldier hero that due to the string of uprisings against Shinra in Wutai that he should be on his guard and not do anything too conspicuous that would further anger the Wutaiese people. The Soldier hero mutely nodded before heading towards the roof and boarding it then nodding to the pilot.

He felt the helicopter lurch before taking off. As the aircraft made its way to Wutai, the soldier member looked over the reports that consisted of Shinra troops being butchered in a myriad of ways. Some being so gruesome that a normal human should not be able to produce such a result, thus this incursion. Sephiroth hated wasting his time in any sense of the word and only did things for a purpose but, for this one time, he'd hope that this mission was a complete waste of his time or things would be getting very difficult for Shinra in the near future. If there was something capable of producing the sights that was detailed in the reports then it was important that he eliminated that cause.

 **New chapter hope ya'll like it. Please drop a review and a favorite it really helps get me up in the morning.**


	5. Chapter 5: Out on the Town

When Jay woke up, he stretched his arms and was satisfied that there was no more soreness in his limbs. Turning over to his small nightstand he saw that it was 7:28, he debated on staying home but when his stomach rumbled he decided to get up. Walking toward his closet he opened it and picked out a button up black shirt with white lines cascading on it and some black jeans. He put on some grey tennis shoes and closed his closet then picked up his phone and wallet before walking out of the apartment.

On the way to the lobby, he was having trouble deciding what he was in the mood for, while he was raised in Shinra he never really left the building unless he had training to get to. So he didn't know what was around to eat since the cafeteria was closed at this time. Walking through the lobby, decided to go to the first restaurant he found and pick something there. When he walked out the building he noticed the bright green hue that surrounded Shinra, due to the mako reactor Midgar was permanently overshadowed by its emerald light.

Looking around he saw there was only residential areas around and no businesses. He walked toward what seemed to be a fountain and saw a tour guide sign that pointed in general directions around Sector 8. Behind him was of course Shinra Tower, up head was the train station, and to his left was LOVELESS avenue which held a variety of tourist spots. One of the attractions caught his interest, _Goblin Bar,_ it didn't sound very great but he was hungry so it didn't bother him. Taking a left he walked to LOVELESS avenue and took in the sights as he walked. The buildings became more residential as he went on until he came to a cross section that had LOVELESS avenue on a sign. Looking to his left and right they were dead ends making him continue to the next street which could only left or right. He saw a bright red sign stating Goblin Bar and feeling his stomach growl some more for food he walked in.

When he looked through the doors, the bar actually didn't look bad there were tables sat up every with two pool tables and a counter featuring a Goblin drinking. Walking past the many people who were talking and drinking he found a empty spot at the counter and sat down. The bartender looked at the new comer with curious eyes as the large bald dark skinned man walked in front of him. "What will we be having tonight?" Jay looked at the menu on the counter and thought about the assorted options such as dirty rice, fish, chicken with garlic, etc. Looking for something simple he asked for the dirty rice and paid upfront. The large man nodded, took the cash and headed through an opening next to the counter.

As he waited, Jay looked around to pass the time with his eyes settling on this group of people who were sitting at their own table. There were five of them in all, three females and two males were sitting a table in a corner. The new Soldier member noted they were all wearing suits but that's not what caught his attention. What caught his attention was that same chestnut wavy hair that completely subdued a Crescent Unit soldier without too much effort. He lightly chuckled hearing at the memory of taking on the three Crescent soldiers after she'd gone. He won of course due to his speed and even if she wasn't there, he felt that her comment about leaving him behind was proven false.

He looked to her companions to see a man with his spiky hair having a long ponytail in the back wearing goggles on his head and red markings on his cheeks. Next to him was another large bald man who had a finely trimmed goatee, there was nothing else distinguishing about him except his ears being pierced and he had sunglasses on. Next to chestnut hair was a pale girl with short black hair that has a long bang on her right side of her face and a shorter one on her right with her hair in the back flaring up a bit at the nape of her neck. Noticeably she was the only one at the table with no tie and her jacket opened and the top button on her shirt unbuttoned. Finally next to her on the end, was a tall fairer skinned girl who had long blond hair that was tied into a high ponytail.

They all seemed to have just got off work since they were still in their suits and were having some drinks before going back to home. At the table the red haired man and blond was laughing and being as loud as everyone else in the bar as the other three lightly laughed with their drinks. Before long they started to get more rowdy and the red haired man accidently bumped into a large burly man who dropped his drinks. That almost instantly escalated into an argument, that gathered the entire bar's attention. The larger man was surely drunk based off the way he swayed and how overly aggressive he was being over something insignificant. As the disagreement went on, what appeared to be the drunk's friends started to surround the table however the red haired man didn't seem the least bit worried.

Jay noticed that the other four barely paid attention to the disagreement and he hypothesised that he was no less competent than the chestnut haired girl when it came to fighting. A total of seven guys surrounded the man and they seemed to about to start brawling when the bartender tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey your rice is ready." Remembering why he came to the bar in the first place, he turned his attention back to his food and ignored the sound of yelling behind him. As he took a small bite, his mouth exploded with flavor and when he was about to take a larger bite when something pushed him, his spoon, and his food all over the counter.

 _That was by far one of the best tasting things I've ever had and someone just ruined it._ That train of thought bounced around Jay's head as he tried to take a moment to rein in his anger. Normally he had a extremely short leash on his emotions, but today was the one day that he had a very short fuse. The Soldier procedure as well as his interaction with Hojo severely decreased his hold on his temper. Turning his head slightly to his left to see what had bumped into him and it was the drunk who first started the argument.

The man in question had a bruise on his face from the red head who was single handedly fighting the other six drunks. The drunk turned head toward the angry Soldier and noticed the dark glare. "You want some of this too boy?!" Jay looked back to the bartender who was boredly watching the interaction. "Can I have another plate please?" The man nodded and put his hand out expecting payment but Jay merely pointed at the drunk next him. "Put it on his tab, he's the one who dropped it." The bartender looked toward the drunk who didn't take that very well and was about to yell, only for Jay to grab him by his head and slammed his head against the counter. The sound reverberated in the entire bar and made the brawlers turn towards the counter.

The bartender looked at the unconscious drunk as well as the stoic Soldier who still had a sour expression on his face. When he saw that three of the brawlers peeled off from the red head and headed towards the Soldier he quickly exited through the opening next to the counter. "You want some of this too?!" Jay inwardly chuckled before replying in an even tone of voice. "You know he said the same thing and look how that turned out. Besides he knocked over my food and it doesn't really cost that much anyway." Having enough of the Soldier's tone they all rushed him at once.

Jay quickly slid out the chair before grabbing the leg and smashing it over nearest drunk's head watching him crumple to the ground. He ducked under a wide swing before retaliating with an uppercut of significant force and speed, more than he had the previous day. The last one of the three tried to tackle him but Jay nimbly sidestepped him, tripped his forward foot, and pushed down on his head making the drunk smash into the ground. He heard the first one get up off the ground and come up for a hay-maker to which the Soldier dodged. Wanting to test out his new Soldier abilities, he decided to hit the drunk a little harder on his thigh making him drop to a knee. Then with one arm, he lifted the man entirely off his feet before spiking him into a nearby unoccupied table crushing it under the sudden force.

Jay was surprised how easy it was to completely handle the weight and the amount of force he generated when he did it. That elation however, was short lived when his arm spasmed in immense pain.

 _During these two days you should not do anything too strenuous as your body becomes acclimated to the sudden change._

Jay didn't think that a simple bar fight was too strenuous but he didn't take in account that it hasn't even been 12 hours since the procedure. He didn't notice a fist flying towards his face before he felt it and knocked him into the counter. Once again, anger flashed in his eyes before he snap kicked the drunk who just punched him with some of that anger. The man was completely blown off his feet and sent flying through a window on the other side of the bar.

It was at that moment, people noticed the way his grey eyes seemed to shine from the mako energy, signifying he was a Soldier member.

Whispers floated throughout the bar as the red haired man took out his three with a few well placed punches and kicks. Moving back to the counter stretching his arm he pulled a nearby stool and sat down with the same sour look plastered on his face. After a moment the bartender came out with another plate of rice with a spoon and looked at the scene behind the young man. There were broken tables and stools with the drunks all completely unconscious, their bodies being covered in bruises while the Soldier in front of him only had a light scrape on his cheek.

Jay took a big whiff on the delicious rice with a smile and was about to take another bite when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Instantly regaining his dark expression, he was about to turn to the _idiot_ who was keeping him from his meal again and tell them to go away until the person talked. "You seem to be doing well."

 _I know that voice_

Turning to his left, the chestnut haired woman was sitting next to him on a stool she seemed to take for herself. His face lost the dark expression in favor of a surprised one seeing that she was actually speaking to him. He fully expected that even if she did see him she'd just leave with her colleagues and not speak to him at all. "It seems you are now a Soldier operative, come here to celebrate?" Regaining his wits, he relaxed and took a bit into his rice before responding. "No, I had nothing to eat today so I came out to eat and ended up here."

Nodding her head, she watched him take another bite of his food and seemingly enjoyed it as he smiled. "Well then how about celebrating with us, we just got off a mission and came here for the fun." Jay wanted to say no and just eat his quick meal before going back to his room and resting for the night but when he opened his mouth to refuse something else came out instead. "I suppose I can stay a little bit longer." The woman smiled before getting up and leading him to her table where her colleagues stared at the new addition. "Everyone this is Jay Lirim, newest recruit to Soldier, i thought that maybe we could celebrate his achievement as well as ours."

The red haired man without a care of personal space, put an arm over Jay's shoulder and put his weight on him with a beer in other hand. "Aww that's so cute! Welcome to the Shinra family, the name's Reno, how you doing?!" Obviously Reno was the troublemaker of the group, not even after finishing a bar fight he still wanted to drink some more. "Come on Reno lay off him can't you see you almost made him drop his food." The black haired woman admonished her friend before sending Jay an apologetic smile.

"Sorry about Reno, he's always been like this, but be around him enough he'll grow on you I promise." The Soldier said nothing as he felt Reno's arm moved off him and see the red haired man pulled into the seat next to the bald man. "Apologies." Short and to the point, Jay could respect that. He placed his plate down before sitting down and looked around the table. For a moment everyone around him just looked at him and said nothing, he took a few awkward bites before the blond on his left spoke up.

"Is it true you're Sephiroth's protege?" Jay placed his spoon down and crossed his arms and put them on the table. He raised an eyebrow at the question and looked over all of them one by one. _They all want to know_. The question is how did they know, the only people who've seen him together with Sephiroth was Angeal, Genesis, and just recently Zack. Thinking back to when he first met this chestnut haired woman she said his first name and last name based off a description one that was somewhat common. They knew him and he was curious what else they knew about him.

"Who told you that I am?" It was a neutral question one that he would gain something no matter who answered or not. If they gave a name, he'd know what department they're under, if they didn't then he would know they weren't allowed to talk about their chain of command. The chestnut and black haired woman smiled as the others just had curious expression. "Seems you still don't know what a Turk is. Normally I wouldn't tell but since we're going to be working with one another since you're in Soldier, the Turks are Investigation Sector of the General Affairs Department of Shinra. Basically we're the intelligence side of Shinra, so when brute force isn't necessary they call us instead of Soldier."

Jay considered that for a moment before deciding to think on it later. "Then yes I suppose you could call me his protege, but since you already know my name and job I think its fair I know all of your names since I know your job." The blonde next to me leaned over to Jay and smiled. "Oh I like him, well sweetheart my name is Freyra, the woman with black hair is called Helen, the baldy is Rude, and the chestnut it…"

"Its Cissnei." The Soldier took a mental note of all their names but made a special note on Cissnei. Call _him_ paranoid but his instincts said watch out for her, whether that be good or bad, he didn't know, he just had a feeling. All of them stayed and drank for a few hours until the group decided it was time to go. Helen and Freyra left first leaving Reno and Rude with Cissnei and Jay.

The four went outside and began walking towards the Fountain area in front of the Shinra building. When they made it to the fountain Rude decided that he should take Reno home due to him being almost blackout drunk. Apparently after they all got more acquainted Reno drank more since they had three reasons to celebrate; their mission success, Jay's promotion, and their triumph in a bar fight. So now he could barely walk straight so Rude put his arm over his shoulders and took him toward the train station. Leaving only Cissnei and Jay alone at the fountain with the night sky out, darkening the city but brightening the mako glow around Midgar.

"So it's just the two of us." Jay said that as an offhand comment and said it only as a conversation starter but Cissnei already had a response with a innocent smile. "And I'm not into one night stands or random bar hookups." The Soldier had a short laugh at her response, he learned her name, job, and that she had a sharp tongue. "I'm not that type of guy, I'd rather stay focused on the mission and my goals."

Cissnei smiled before walking to the right of the tourist sign. "You really are Sephiroth's protege, you act just like him." Jay raised an eyebrow considering that she may have met Sephiroth and started following her. Hearing his footsteps she stopped and turned around with a curious expression on her face. "Stalking me home?"

Jay shook his head before shrugging his shoulders. "Wanted to walk you home besides, judging from the way you mentioned him it seems you knew Sephiroth." The Turk chuckled a bit before shaking her head. "I don't know him personally, only through description and I can take care of myself plus I only take people I like back home with me." Remembering how she fought he knew she could take care of herself and judging the way she was looking at him, she wasn't moving until he was on his way. Shrugging his shoulders he started walking back toward Shinra tower and he could hear her footsteps going in the other direction.

As he was walking, a white card spun in front of him before spinning around and toward him. He caught in his hand and examined the card, only seeing a phone number with a red shuriken design on it. Jay couldn't help but smile as he pulled out his phone and added the number to his contacts.

 **Like I said I spent a lot of time in Basic training writing this, maybe I'm just more motivated to write now since I have some more free time and because of that review. Shout out to Some Guy In An Ambulance, that review definitely sped me up without it I probably would've updated next week but I had some free time today so here's an update, I hope I get a review or two please stay tuned**


	6. Chapter 6: Stirrings Beginnings

Jay woke up at 8:17 the next morning, pretty late since he was generally ready to go at 6:30, no doubt the night before made him more tired than he realized. He got back to his quarters at one in the morning then took a quick shower before going off to bed. The Turks definitely knew how to have fun, but he didn't see himself joining their celebrations to often.

Jumping off his bed, he got ready and was out the door by 8:25 with another long sleeved button up shirt that was teal with vertical stripes and jeans with regular tennis shoes. Jay rushed toward the elevator before pushing the button to get to the Soldier floor so he could receive his new equipment. Moments passed in the elevator until he made it to the floor where a lone Soldier member was waiting. His uniform was the same baby blue issue as Zack's was with his helmet was on, and the standard issue Shinra sword on his back.

When the 3rd class noticed him he quickly walked up and stuck his hand out in a friendly gesture. "Hey are you the new recruit who is supposed to get everything issued to him today?" Jay nodded his head once while taking the hand into a firm handshake.

"Yes, my name is Jay Lirim I was told to be here at 8:30 to get my equipment." The 3rd class let go of his hand and gestured to a door on the far left side. "Then follow me, I'll help you get situated and the name's Luxiere." The two went through the door and Jay took in the line of capsules to his left as well as a console next to them. In front of him was a screen door that seemed to lead into a meeting room of some sort, due to large table.

Luxiere tapped Jay on the shoulder before coming up on one of the ten capsules. Tapping on the farthest one at the end being number ten it opened, revealing a baby blue uniform in a bundle tied in a string. Jay walked over to the capsule picking up the uniform and looking inside to see another one underneath. "These are Shinra supply caches, they're usually filled with something for Soldier members; if they check. For the tenth capsule it's usually a spare 3rd class uniform, but going up the capsules there's usually better stuff. Before you think about it, no you don't have authorization to access the higher capsules, only those who have a high mission rating can open them. It's this new incentive program to do out the way missions, the more missions you do the higher your rating and higher access to capsules you recieve."

Jay nodded and took the extra uniform before closing the capsule and followed Luxiere as he walked out the room back into the main lobby of the Soldier floor. Taking a left, they went throughout the lobby until the 3rd class stopped at a door labeled _armory._ Going inside they were met by rows and rows of Shinra standard issue swords; as well as rifles for the infantry and shoulder pads linked with suspenders and a large belt.

"Alright take your pick and get your sizes, I'll grab you a bag so you can pack all of your stuff. Once you get everything put on your uniform, I have to get you signed into the mainframe so you can do the first simulation mission that all 3rd classes are required to take." Luxiere left the room leaving Jay to roam the aisles of the armory on his own. Going to the armor section he got two pairs of shoulder pads, suspenders, as well as boots that were all his size before taking his load to the weapon racks.

Setting hs massive pile of apparel to the side he started looking through the many swords that lined the shelves. He picked up each sword and weighed them each but couldn't find one that was the right fit. He was halfway through when Luxiere returned with a large backpack and set it down next to Jay's gear. "This is your assault pack, you generally pack this with you during your missions but for now you can use this to carry your stuff."

Jay barely paid attention as he kept looking through the rows of swords for the one he'd like but he got to the end and still haven't gotten a sword he liked. When he placed the last one on the rack, he lightly hung his head as Luxiere walked over. "They're all the same weapon just pick one already." Jay rolled his eyes as he thought back to a few years ago when he read one of Sephiroth's notes and it contained the connection between a weapon and its user.

 _You can't just pick one, you have to have a weapon that's unique to you, even all of these weapons are different. None of them fit me, when i fought against Zack I used those two swords because I had to at that time if I had a weapon that I'm used to then i might've done better. Now that I have the chance to get a weapon unique to me, I'm not gonna waste it using a half-assed substitute._

Luxiere had his arms crossed waiting for Jay to pick a sword but was surprised when he was questioned. "Is there by chance a blacksmith in Midgar, I need a weapon fashioned to my specifications." The 3rd class uncrossed his arms as he considered the question for a moment racking his brain for an answer before coming to one.

"Well there isn't one here in Midgar but there are some outside of Midgar, not that you can visit them anyway since you haven't been registered into the Shinra mainframe." Jay nodded as he faced the weapon aisle.

 _Well I guess I'll have to suck it up for now but first thing i'm doing is getting one made for me._

He picked one up at random then packed all of his equipment into the assault pack before throwing it over his shoulder. "Alright how soon can I get registered?" Luxiere led the way out the armory and to a restroom. "As soon as you finish getting dressed with your sword on your back we go back to the console in the meeting room and it'll scan you then add you to the registry. After that we can get you a training simulation of a mission so we can get you a profile of your skills inputted into the database."

Jay wordlessly got into the restroom and discarded his clothes before putting on the uniform and combat boots. As he hooked on the suspenders he felt a hard material on his back, placing his hand on the center of his back he felt a metal plate. Shrugging his shoulders he slung his assault pack on his back and left the restroom in his new baby blue uniform.

Luxiere was waiting outside and looked over at the new 3rd class who was carrying his assault pack and his sword in one hand. "Nice of you to finish, but why are you carrying your sword that way why not just hook it to your back?" Jay tilted his head in confusion as Luxiere turned around and gestured to the metal plate on his back. "The plate in between our suspenders is a magnet that holds most metals, Shinra scientists worked hard to keep the magnetic pull strong enough to hold the weapon yet not strong enough to obstruct unsheathing an operative's weapon."

As he talked, Luxiere grabbed Jay's sword before placing it on the magnet on Jay's back. The new 3rd class wiggled his back trying to shake the sword off but found the magnet held fast, and when he lifted a hand to pull on the hilt. The sword came with some reluctance that was negligible. "Now let's go back to the console so we can get you registered." The two of them walked back to the meeting room and had Jay step in front of console while Luxiere tapped a few buttons causing it to start up.

After a moment, the console screen lit up and started to scan Jay's body. When it finished the screen showed the new 3rd's body on a screen as well as some basic information like his name height and weight. "Ok now that that's done, I want you to download this application interface from Shinra, it allow you to sign up for missions from your phone, but you can do that later. I'm going to manually enter the simulated mission info into your profile, while I do that you go and standby in the simulation room; its across the hall.

"Ok I'll be waiting, do hurry." Jay left his assault pack and walked into the simulation room which was just a room that had blue lights lining the wall. When he saw the lights get brighter he pulled his sword of his back and got into a ready stance, mentally preparing for the encounter. Three Shinra infantryman virtualized with their weapons locked and loaded prepared to fight.

 _Activate Combat Mode_

With the simulator's audio cue the infantry men opened fire with surprising accuracy and coordination. With Jay's new body enhancement, he could see the path of incoming bullets and found that his body was more than able to evade them. Rolling out the way of the incoming torrent of bullets, he ran around the perimeter avoiding the bullets the other two fired. The infantry simulations managed to time their firing and reloading cycles to always have a constant stream of bullets.

Knowing there wouldn't be a time all three of them would be reloading, the 3rd class made a lightning quick pivotal turn on his foot and charged the three head on while staying low to the ground. He had to weave in between a few bullets while swatting some away until he got in striking distance of the three. Jay planted his foot for stability as he made a wide sweeping arc that pushed the three soldiers back, and without rest he advanced on the closest one and impaled him.

Ripping his sword out of the hologram he blocked a hail of bullets before advancing and cutting the gun in half. With his primary weapon in two pieces the infantry man pulled out his tonfa and went for a swing which Jay expertly blocked. The 3rd class was about to dispatch the infantry soldier in front of him when he saw another one appear to replace the last one he took out.

Hearing him cock his rifle, Jay grabbed the infantryman in front of him and pulled him into the line of fire as a shield. As the body in front of him was riddled with bullets the Soldier member jumped on the infantryman's shoulder and used it as a springboard to get above the two remaining infantrymen.

Neither could raise their barrels in time before both were without a head. Hearing the sound of the simulator behind him, he turned to face two more infantrymen with their weapons raised. Before they could fire however, Jay was already in range and instead of going for a slash, he slammed a fist in the body of one.

The impact would've made the infantryman crumple to the ground if Jay didn't grab the arm with gun in it and held it up while using him as a shield again then firing at the last infantryman. With the last threat dispatched, the 3rd class let the arm go before stabbing his sword into his shield's head.

 _Conflict Resolved_

Jay placed his sword on his back as he walked towards the exit of the simulation room and headed back to the meeting room. Luxiere was still at the console, seemingly typing in the last few commands into the console before stepping away from it. "That should do it, now you should be all set to take missions that happen to be available. Now then, you said that wanted to visit a blacksmith there happens to be one in Banora which isn't too far away. While you were in the simulator a request for a Soldier member popped up, something about some monsters ruining the fields; should be easy. Pull out your phone I'll show you how to accept missions."

Jay took out his phone then followed Luxiere's instructions until he saw the mission request menu and found the sole mission in Banora. Like the other 3rd class said; it was ranked an easy mission but under it, he saw that it was just now accepted and the operative would be leaving in thirty minutes. Jay had to hurry, sure he could've gone to another blacksmith but the sooner he got a custom sword the better.

With that in mind, he got his assault pack and waved to Luxiere as he ran to the elevator not giving the other 3rd class time to speak to him. The young man watched Jay run off with his things, the sight made him think of a certain _puppy_ that he knew. The thought made him laugh a bit, before he looked back at his phone to see that Jay's name popped up for a brief moment before disappearing and the mission roster number turned to two instead of one.

Curiosity getting the better of him Luxiere selected the mission roster and looked at the name above Jay's to see who'd he be going with. When he recognized the same he froze, why the hell would _he_ go on such an out of the way mission that was barely any effort to even a 3rd class? The name above Jay's was none other than Soldier 1st class Genesis Rhapsodos.

* * *

Meanwhile Sephiroth finally made it to Wutai, he got off the chopper and took in the sight of the forested terrain. They landed a few miles off of Fort Tamblin; one of Wutai's strongholds. The string of uprisings in Wutai was due to the dispute of Shinra trying to build a reactor there which would destroy terrain. The natives of course resisted but there hadn't been a true declaration of war yet as Shinra would undoubtedly win with their vast superior resources. So they only had small skirmishes here and there which made Shirna post troops in Wutai and a few Soldier members to keep them in line.

Usually the Shinra army could combat the Wutai forces with efficiency but for some reason the troops have been completely overrun in a matter of hours. Even with Soldier members helping to reinforce the troops the result was the same only this time, there were Soldier members in pieces. Even adding 2nds didn't help so Sephiroth decided to put an end to this, _personally_.

As he was in transit, a patrol of Soldier members and infantrymen disappeared and their last known location was a mile away from his drop off point. The pilot took off back towards to nearby base to refuel and wait for the 1st's call for a pick up, leaving Sephiroth to start his trek. The stone trails made perfect walkways through the dense forest, making anyone walking the trail easily visible. Most would not want to be able to be spotted so easily in enemy territory but most weren't Sephiroth. He knew that he was an easy target; that was the point, whatever killed the Soldier members was here somewhere and he wanted to find it. Even if it meant letting it find him first.

The forest was quiet the entire time of his walk, even when he got to the site it was still deathly quiet. The sight was gruesome yet elicited no reaction from the Soldier hero who simply walked up to the massacre. The bodies were crushed, some torn apart while others seemed to have jagged marks on them as if they were _eaten_. Impact craters littered the ground, the reports hypothesised that something large had been at the site and caused the carnage. Maybe some kind of mechanized robot or machine, it stated that monsters were unlikely given that impact craters that were in a straight line ended abruptly.

Monsters were known for their savage nature, even ones domesticated by Wutai were still erratic. The majority hypothesis was a machine had decimated their troops and flew away so there wouldn't be any footprints leading back to it. At first glance, that could be an accurate estimation of what happened but the 1st wanted to be thorough.

The "footprints" were perfectly symmetrical both long ways and side ways, something that could've been built to have stability. Sephiroth leaned down and saw that at the bottom and top of the footprint there was a spherical indent deep in the ground with the rest of the footprint being a few inches more elevated. He studied their trail and noticed that they went Into the forest, following them he found they went Into the deep recess of the forest.

So the perpetrator either flew off after coming out the forest or landed here and went back to the forest. Either way he would follow the footprints after finishing here. Going to the last set of footprints he saw a large indentation in the ground next to them. It had a long gash and two smaller yet thicker indentions on each side with all of them being perfectly rectangular.

According to autopsy reports some of the bodies had similar engravings on their corpses making whatever hitting them to be very heavy. It might've been a weapon of some sort that was used to kill off their troops. Going back and analyzing the area, Sephiroth could find no additional piece of information, which left him with the only recourse to be looking in the forest to find whatever killed their troops. Following the footprints he noticed that there were other trails of similar footprints crossing them, as if someone had walked in circles to confuse anyone who'd come searching for them.

 _A basic tactic, yet effective to most._

He could essentially just follow the trail and walk every single path until he found the right one but that had the risk of getting lost and lose track of the winding footprints. This would take time, an exuberant amount that most people wouldn't spend looking for someone, but the Soldier Hero was patient, not to mention _faster_ than a regular person.

Summoning his prized weapon, the Masamune, he lightly tipped it into the ground before hunching over and pushing off his feet. His deadly blade dug a path behind him as it looked like the Soldier hero was _flying_ at high speed while he followed the path. After a moment the footprints started to overlap each other in a chaotic fashion but Sephiroth could still pick out where they lead.

 _55...56...57..58..59..60._

When he got to sixty, Sephiroth lifted his Masamune up before laying it down forming jumps in the trail he was making. This was a countermeasure that would further help him maintain the correct course every minute he would add a gap to the trail behind him. So on the chance he got lost all he'd have to do was follow the path with the most jumps in the trail. The Soldier Hero's flight lasted for about 4 minutes before the footprints cut off in front of him.

Sephiroth bent down to the last set of footprints and noticed they were literally cut off as if whatever made them had its foot perfectly sliced in half by a blade. Pulling out his cellphone, the Soldier hero checked his GPS location and found that he was a few miles from Fort Tamblin. All the attacks had happened further away from the fort so something so large shouldn't have been able to sneak to the fort without being noticed by air. So Sephiroth could rule out that the perpetrator did not fly from the site, rather it walked away into the forest.

Now with that established he followed the footprints and it led him here so there must be something here, in theory. Deciding to test his prediction, Sephiroth raised his sword before slamming it down at the ground in front of the cut off footprints. Needless to say the resounding sound of metal slamming into metal registered in the Soldier's mind as the ground in front of him split in half.

Through the opening there was a large industrial size staircase that led deep underground. Sephiroth descended down into the stairway without pause, not even to radio the base he might've found something. He would deal with this on his own terms now without any interference, if there Wutaiese infantry down there; they'll be dealt with. After a few moments going down the staircase he came to an even larger door but this one was massive bolted door.

 _This'll take more than a swing._

The thought was sarcastic as he looked up to his high right to see a miniature camera staring at him. "You going to let me in or risk me bringing an army back with me?" For a moment, nothing happened but Sephiroth knew that someone was watching him through the camera. With the footprints leading here and there being such a heavily secured door with cameras; he must be in the right place. When he got no response for another moment, the Soldier hero turned promptly on his heel and headed back up to the surface. As he took a few steps, he heard a massive lock disengage and hurried footsteps coming from behind him.

 _Looks like I won't have to go back to base._

Gunfire constantly interrupted as the Wutai soldiers opened fire on the legendary Soldier member, only to hit air. The infantrymen looked confused as a shadow enveloped them from above, looking up they only saw a silver flash before all their heads were rolling on the floor. Landing in a crouch, Sephiroth flipped his sword from the reverse grip in which he had it in and stood to his full height then advanced into the now open door.

When he went through the door, he found that there were monitors and consoles that were scattered throughout the room. Sephiroth looked around and noticed that there were tunnels that seemed to go on for a bit in the room, one of them leading towards Fort Tamblin. _I'll investigate that one last since it might just be a tunnel connecting the two locations. It'd be better if I explore the rest of this base before calling for Shinra forces._

That left two tunnels, one that went straight ahead and another that went in the opposite direction of the tunnel that went towards the fort. Sephiroth walked towards the left tunnel and noticed that it was composed completely of metal, raising his weapon again he hit the back of his Masamune creating a loud clanging sound. The Soldier hero listened for the echo to come back to judge how far of a distance the tunnel stretched. The echo came back shortly meaning this tunnel wasn't that long in distance, moving to the next tunnel he did the same and the echo took an even longer time returning. Sephiroth decided he should go for the first tunnel seeing as he could search it faster and return back to the main hub to search the other tunnel. Walking down the short tunnel he saw that there was an entryway to what seemed to be a type of data room.

There were shelves and shelves lined with books as well as some more consoles with the screens turned on. Meaning that someone was here just recently and left before the Soldier member could see them or get to them. He couldn't search all of these records at the present moment so Sephiroth turned on his heel after quickly scanning through all the bookshelves and went back toward the main hub of the hidden facility.

Before he went to the next tunnel, he heard a low growl coming from the tunnel going to Fort Tamblin. Facing the entrance with a focused expression and his Masamune at his side, Sephiroth took steps into the darkness. The growl began growing louder as well as heavy footsteps joined the chorus the more Sephiroth advanced into the tunnel. It wasn't long until the footsteps ceased and a new sound came to life, it was like something was cutting through the air, something heavy. As it got closer, the Soldier hero stopped in his tracks and waited until he could get a clear visual in the darkness.

The sound got closer and closer as Sephiroth waited, it wasn't until the hair on the back of his neck stood up that he swung his Masamune in an upward arc to meet whatever produced the sound. The massive axe was knocked back and into a wall as the source of the growl and footprints became visible to the Soldier hero. It was a hulking beast, reddish purple skin and one pronounced right horn with various ornaments on it as well as a mask that covered its eyes and left its sharp teeth exposed. The beast's body was humanoid however was muscular beyond belief, it was easily bigger than a tank and with his arms, it could probably rip one in half without problem.

The beast walked over to the large axe and plucked it from the wall then roared at its opponent. Sephiroth readied his stance to combat the bigger enemy, but tuned his ears to the sound of even more footsteps coming behind and in front of him. Slightly turning his head he could see more Wutai troops appearing behind him all of them equipped with an axe rifle aimed at his back. There were grunts as well as sergeants lined up in formation behind him, what stood out was the silver armor that one of them was wearing. Reports identified as the Crescent Unit, warriors that were supposed to appease Leviathan and smite the enemies of Wutai; they were Wutai's answer to Soldier.

They haven't been seen very often on the battlefield, in fact the one time a member was caught on camera it was against infantry units. The battle went quickly with the squad of five infantrymen falling to the Wutai warrior. Shinra attempted to make simulation modules based on the warriors but lacked sufficient data so they were roughly as good as three sergeants in the simulator.

"Soldier member Sephiroth; I am Crescent Unit Aqua and I demand you surrender, failure to do so will result in lethal force. You've already murdered some of our troops, so my men are already intent on killing you, I on the other hand wish to resolve this without anymore loss of life. If you surrender you will be treated fairly and worthy of your status as a general will be honored in our care." Aqua spoke with an authoritative yet reverent tone that suggested that even though they were enemies, he respected the Soldier member. The troops behind him however did not share the same mindset, there were a numerous amount of them probably 2 companies of troops. They really set the stage for him, anyone but Sephiroth would probably pale at the overwhelming odds, save Angeal and Genesis of course.

 _This could be a chance to get more information on what killed our troops as well as the Crescent Unit._

Deciding that there was no hurt in talking, Sephiroth relaxed his stance a little yet kept a loose grip on his Masamune. The Wutai troops noticed that his weapon was slightly raised and kept their barrels trained on him all the same, ready to gun him down. "This is a unique opportunity to be meeting with the elusive Crescent Unit, we've scoured Wutai multiple times and have only recorded one sitting. Aqua was it, how exactly did you avoid our detection for so long?"

Sephiroth couldn't see his face under the helmet and cloth but could tell that the warrior was carefully wording his response in his head. "This land gives us strength and protection which can thwart any attack while giving us an advantage." The Soldier general thought about his own response for a moment, the Wutai warrior gave idealistic words of a fanatic proud of his land yet it had a line of truth to it.

 _The land gives us strength and protection. Normally that wouldn't mean much but this underground tunnel gave them an opportunity on Shinra forces as well as concealed them when they made their getaway. Perhaps Wutai has a tunnel system to deploy troops for ambushes and extract them without being seen._

"So are your troops not efficient enough that you need terrain to even the playing field against Shinra?" Hopefully poking at their strength would get Aqua to slip up and reveal more information. There was no sign of anger in the Wutai warrior as he answered simply and without pause, as if he expected the question.

"Our men are willing to die for this land and because of our devotion we have received the strength to defy any army no matter how vast." Sephiroth narrowed his eyes at Aqua's words, he said _receive_ as in given to them.

 _Is there someone supporting them?_

Sephiroth didn't want to be direct but from the way he saw some of the Wutai soldiers behind twitch their fingers if they were about to fire, he knew that his time for questions was coming to an end. "Whoever is helping you, did they show you how to create this beast behind me?" Aqua readied his weapon as soon as the Soldier hero finished his sentence and the beast took a step forward.

"I require an answer Sephiroth, will you surrender or will we be forced to attack?"

 **Hello again everyone I'm sorry for the late update I had somethings happening that's why I tried making an extra long chapter, I hope you all enjoyed it. I'll try to get my next chapter up next week with a similar length anyway please read and review then tell your friends. :D**


	7. Chapter 7: First Brush

Jay had dropped his new items off at his room before entering the elevator and pressing the roof button, hoping the other Soldier member hadn't left yet. As he waited for the elevator to reach the top, he couldn't help but think to himself that every elevator in the building was slow. It did give him time to think though about what sort of weapon he had a mind for at the blacksmith. He was going to keep up his dual sword style since he was better in that practice than using just one blade but he needed speed to compliment his weapon.

So he decided to request that a katana be made for him and he opted for a sheath instead of open carry so he could reduce wear and tear caused by the outside. One would go on his back while the other would go across his waist to allow a faster drawing speed for the katana on his hip. He also had to factor in how much time it'd take for the pair of katanas to be made, it would generally take a week to make a sword. Problem is the mission would take him and the other soldier operative two days at the most for such a routine task. Unless the other operative had an extenuating reason then Jay would have to go back to Banora another time.

The elevator finally reached the roof and he stepped off to see the helicopter ready to take off. With surprise the 3rd class sprinted to the chopper hoping that it wouldn't take off seeing it was right there. Maybe the other operative didn't know there would be two operatives on the mission and that's why they were about to leave him. As soon as he stepped into the helicopter though, all those thoughts evaporated when he saw the red overcoat.

 _Of all the operatives in Soldier it just HAD to be this guy._

They both didn't make a good first impression on one other and as professional as Jay tried to be, he could not say with an ounce of truth in his soul that he liked Genesis. The 1st class's comment about him staying in the blaze of his old life wasn't appreciated and even if he was jesting, that wasn't something to be said to a child who lost everything. To avoid making another undesirable confrontation the 3rd class but on a neutral face and hoped that the 1st didn't remember him from way back then. When Genesis's bored expression lite up and had that _same_ smug expression that got under his skin, Jay knew the 1st remebered him.

"Why if it isn't Sephiroth's personal lap dog, tell me how does it feel to have a proper collar on?" Genesis was obviously referring to the Soldier uniform that he now wore and Jay could've let the comment go as if that was just how the 1st talked. But he couldn't, that comment was meant to get a rise out of the 3rd class as it did twelve years ago when they first met. So he returned the comment with the same response he did back then; a quiet glare.

Genesis leaned back into his seat with his arms and legs crossed smiling his head off at the gesture. Jay inwardly groaned as the chopper began taking off. _This is going to be a very long mission._

* * *

Sephiroth raised his blade as a hail of bullets rushed to get to him, each one being meticulously cut into pieces as he swung his Masamune. The creature behind him roared in fury and began to charge at the Soldier operative with his weapon high in the air. The Wutai troops kept their distance so they wouldn't be caught by either the Masamune or the beast's weapon. The Soldier hero noticed that the Cresent warrior held his position waiting and most likely watching as the beast got closer and closer to the legend.

When the shadow of the beast engulfed his Sephiroth swung his sword in a hard deliberate fashion and released a shockwave that blew away the bullets. Without missing a beat, he sidestepped the large beast's attack then leaped upwards and cleanly decapitated the beast. The shock was apparent on the infantrymens' faces as they took a step back in fear and that was all it took for all of them to be without heads.

All that was left was the Cresent warrior, who stood calmly as all of his soldiers were completely slaughtered. Sephiroth walked until he was a meter away from the Wutai soldier and raised his Masamune above his enemy's head.

"Now it seems we've gained more time to talk and I would like for you to answer my questions with more detail than in our earlier conversation." The Wutaiese warroior kept his stance as he tilted his head to keep the blade above his head as if it was a guilloutine ready to drop. Even with the legendary Soldier member in front of him Aqua managed to still produce a strong and firm voice when he addressed his enemy.

"My commanders has severly underestimated your abilities, we should've sent several brigades to combat you. In any event the data we collected during this incursion will be put to use in upgrading our projects to better combat Shinra. We've established our beasts can outmatch 3rd class Soldier members as well as infantrymen, we should've progressed to 2nd class then to 1st instead of going after you prematurely. I will be sure to include that in my report to the commander." The way Aqua spoke made Sephiroth chuckle, for him to make that report he'd have to get _away_ from _himself_. A feat that very few can say they achieved.

It wasn't until he heard a sound coming from above him, knowing better than taking his eyes off his enemy without assurance; Sephiroth elected to wound him to take a brief glance. He swung his Masamune down towards Aqua's shoulder in an attempt to cut off his arm, but was surprised when his blade slid down the poleaxe and embedded itself into the ground. Before Sephiroth could pull his sword out of the ground for another swing at the Wutai warrior, Aqua jumped back before aiming his rifle at the ceiling. It was then that the Soldier hero noticed there was an extra barrel under the poleaxe.

A small projectile flew out of the barrel and slammed the ceiling, causing it to be covered in smoke. The sound instantly got louder as Sephiroth chanced a brief glance to see rushing water fall from the hole in the ceiling. Realizing Aqua was trying to escape, he leaped toward the Wutai warrior with another swing intended to wound. Unfortunately, Aqua casted a large Blizzaga spell in front of him that managed to slow the Masamune's swing slightly and block the Soldier's view of his target for a brief moment.

That moment was all Aqua needed, when the large slab of ice fell there was on one to be seen; only knee high water. Sephiroth landed on the bottom half of the slab of ice that floated in the torrent to look for the Wutai warrior. It seemed that Aqua didn't recieve his name for nothing because there seemed to be no sign of him, he had to come up for air at some point if he was hiding under the torrent.

The problem was, Sephiroth couldn't wait that long, if the water was already knee high after a few moments then it would be flowing at a fast pace towards the secret hideout he discovered earlier. Even if he didn't get to capture the Wutai warrior he got to see how well trained the Cresent Unit was.

 _There aren't many people who can parry my strikes._

The underground hideout undoubtedly had information that Shinra could use and for it to be washed away would be disadvantageos. Deciding to save the source of potential information, Sephiroth jumped off the slab and bounced off wall to wall to increase his speed and beat the torrent of water. The opening to the tunnel was coming into view and at the speed he was going as well as the distance the water had until entering the hub, he knew he wouldn't make it in time.

Swinging his Masamune in quick succession, arcs of compressed air from the sheer force of his swing hit the ceiling ahead of the water and metal chunks fell from the impacts. The torrent was halted for a moment giving Sephiroth enough time to zoom ahead of the water and land in front of the opening of the tunnel.

"Freeze." Raising his hand a massive amount of ice was created in front of the opening sealing off the tunnel. Going over to the nearest console, Sephiroth was pleased to see that there was no water damage. Walking out of the underground base, the Soldier hero contacted the nearby Shinra forces to have them investigate. When they responded that they were sending a unit, Sephiroth looked towards Fort Tamblin and considered going there to find Aqua.

He decided against it however, he now knew what was killing Soldier members and that they were developing newer beasts. If he attacked now without the proper amount of troops to surround and contain the Wutai forces so no dissidents could continue their experiments somewhere else. There was one thing that still lingered on Sephiroth's mind, it was what Aqua said before the beast attacked.

 _We recieved the strength to defy any army no matter how vast._

Someone seemed to be assisting them in their campaign against Shinra and whoever they were knew Soldier well enough to create countermeasures for them. This needed to be investigated much further but that would have to come for another day, he had a pupil to get back to. The sooner he got back to Midgar, the sooner he could train Jay, and he could have another capable Soldier member able to pick up missions the majority of Soldier couldn't. Fair was coming along nicely under Angeal's tutelege but time was of the essence.

As he heard helicopters overhead, Sephiroth turned his back on the entrance as he entered a chopper when all the troops went into the base. He ordered the pilot back to base so he could get a transport back to Midgar, he would report this to Lazard to follow up later. For now though, they needed to analyze the information that was inside the underground base before moving ahead with any plans.

* * *

The chopper landed in Banora with the two Soldier members getting off and watching the helicopter leave. Jay's face was in a set frown while next to him Genesis had a pleased expression on his face. The entire ride consisted of the 1st throwing snide remarks at the 3rd class in hopes of getting a more verbal reaction but Jay held out.

"Since we are on a mission and I'm a higher rank than you, I expect you to treat me as such. Is that understood?" The 3rd forced the frown off his face and straightened his posture as he went into mission mode. Even if he didn't like Genesis he knew how to respect authority and rank. The 1st raised a brown eyebrow at the sudden change in attitude of the 3rd, he honestly expected resistance but instead got obediance.

He was tempted to throw in another remark but they had a task to complete and Genesis was very protective of Banora. Nodding his head, he led the way to the fields outside of town where they saw a man working on a fence to the field. Walking up to the man, Genesis coughed to get his attention. Upon seeing who was behind him, the man beamed up when he recognized the 1st.

"Is that you Genesis? My how have you grown! It seemed only yesterday you left for Shinra, I read about you in the papers sometimes and how you're one of the best ones they got." Jay walked up to the pair and stood off to the side listening to the two, it seemed that Genesis lived here before Soldier judging by the way he made his through town and this interaction.

The 1st in question replied with tight responses as if he seemed uncomfortable talking with the farmer but didn't want to seem rude which was surprising to see for Jay. Genesis seemed to be the guy who didn't care if he was rude or not because of how _superior_ he was compared to everyone else. Now he was attempting to be courteous, maybe it was because he was on mission, which begged the question of why a 1st would accept such a low class mission.

"There have been reports of some monsters attacking the fields, is that why you're fencing off the area?" The farmer nodded his head and pointed past the fence. "Yeah they come out at night and tear up the crops, at first there haven't been any incidents but they started coming out of nowhere." Genesis's face darkened for a moment before turning back towards the farmer.

"We will take care of the situation, for now keep people away from the fields we don't want anymore causulties. When the creatures come out tonight we will route them as well as eliminate the nest of where they might be coming from." With that, Genesis promptly turned on his heel and went back towards the town of Banora. Jay looked back towards the fenced off fields and thought that maybe they should look at the area where the creatures were last to see if they could pick up a trail.

"Permission to survey the site for more information sir?" The 1st stopped and was silent for a moment as if he was mulling the suggestion in his head. The moment stretch to several as the 3rd did not get an answer to his request, Jay reasoned it was a simple request but for Genesis, it was as if he was pondering the secrets of the universe. Just as he was about to ask again, the 1st turned around with an unreadable expression.

"Permission granted, however if met with any opposition you are to return back to town. Do not engage the enemy under any circumstance, we need to make sure that our attack is decisive and leaves no room for them to escape. When you finish surveying the area and detecting a possible trail from where they could come from return to town and go to the largest house, I will be waiting for you there." Jay nodded and hopped over the fence with ease before heading towards the site.

The fields offered little visibility, as the crops grew roughly the size of a person but there were trails kept free to walk down. After a moment of walking, Jay found torn crops with multiple footprints overlapping them. The odd part of about the footprints were the fact that they weren't monster like footprints. In fact, the 3rd could see that all of them were boot footprints. If that was so, why did the report say creatures and not people?

Well regardless of what the report said he could see a trail going further into the crops and the footprints led more that way. Getting to his feet, Jay ran down the trail deeper into the crops until he finally reached the other side. Past the crops was rock trail that led up to some cliffs. The footprints seemed to have come down the trail into the crops and then tore them up at night.

Jogging up to the cliffs, the footprints went all the way up to the edge and off the cliff as if someone walked off. Jay walked up to the edge and knelt down to look over it for anything out of the ordinary but found nothing. The sound of running footsteps made the 3rd jump high into the air before drawing his sword and landing in stance behind whoever came up behind him.

Two red masked men, wielding twin daggers turned to face him. Their clothing was a dark red form fitting shirt with a white shoulder pad accented with black feathers and their black pants had a cloth that wrapped around the waist and down to the thigh with the bottom of their pant legs tucked into red boots.

The way they swayed and twirled their daggers indicated that they were very agile even more so them himself perhaps. "So are you two the ones messing up the fields?" They didn't answer, only grasp their daggers before rushing side by side. Jay crouched and took a hard step forward, launching himself toward the two before throwing a test swing aimed at their abdomens.

With the grace of gymnist they both flipped over the swing before turning and leaving a gash on the 3rd's back. Jay shrugged his shoulders a few times to relieve some of the pain in his back as he kept his eyes on his two opponents.

 _Well I can't rush them, I'll have to play this smart. I also doubt I'll have the speed to get away, so I'll wait for their move._

He didn't have to wait long as the two of them rushed towards him again with one flipping over him and the other going for a slash. Jay blocked the attack then rolled to the side just in time to avoid another slash at his back. He took a swing at closest one's back but was intercepted by the other's dagger. Growling to himself, he was about to try and force it out of the man's hand by swinging his sword up with two hands but had to grab his oppenent's wrist to stop his stab attempt.

That however did not stop the other masked man from kicking the 3rd in the chest pushing him dangerously close to the edge. Righting himself from the impact, Jay looked up to see them once again rushing him. Standing to his full height, he placed his sword in his left hand then grasped the bottom with his right. After he brought his left arm across his chest while pointing the blade at his incoming enemies.

He'd studied this stance for years and knew he could imitate it successfully. Sephiroth's duel stance was usually used to deliever quick strikes or counterattack with definitive blows. While he may be able to perform the moves effectively, his sword wasn't as long as the Masamune. Part of style required the blade being able to reach the enemy first and being out of their reach as the user striked. So he couldn't use the moves exactly as Sephiroth would, he'd have to use more speed to compensate for his range.

The man on the right went for a thrust but had to quickly slide out of the way when the 3rd lunged forward while angling the blade to push the dagger out of the way by deflecting it with the flat side. Without missing a beat, Jay slammed his right palm to the left and slashed the man on the chest leaving a shallow wound. Turning to face the one on the left, he sidestepped a overhead swing then stepped on the man's hand before going for his head. The attempt was blocked by the man's free hand weapon but that didn't stop the swift kick to the man's face.

 _Ok I can do this, they caught me off guard before but as long as I play it smart and strike when it matters I got this._

The two masked men righted themselves before rushing toward him again charging at him at the same time. Sidestepping to the left one's side, he effectively for a short time turned the fight into one on one. The man took a swipe at Jay's neck, who ducked under it and blocked a swing at his midsection by releasing his right hand then lowering the blade to his right side. He then replaced his left hand grip with a right hand reverse grip before dashing forward and slicing deep into his opponent's open abdomen.

As he dashed past the first man, Jay surprised the second with a hilt to the gut making him double over in pain. Stepping back, the 3rd placed his left hand and acted as if he was drawing a katana from a sheathe.

 _Lights out._

Jay drew his sword in a vertical arc hoping to cleanly slash into the man's chest wounding him critically but not kill him. The blade met the man's right shoulder as he cut the arm off completely because the masked man jerked in time to avoid a chest wound. Even with his arm gone, the masked man tried to continue fighting by throwing his dagger at close range aimed at the 3rd's head.

Jay managed to move his head to the side but the dagger still left a thin gash above his eyebrow on the left side of his head. Blood started to flow down his face and block his field of vision making him instinctively try to wipe away the blood. That proved to be a mistake, a fetal one if the 3rd hadn't trained excessively before he joined Soldier. The masked man who got a deep cut in his abdomen, tried to tackle Jay and throw him off the cliff. The 3rd rolled out of the way but not before getting a dagger to his leg as the masked man stabbed him when they passed each other.

Jay rolled away to face the two masked men and prepare himself to face them despite his weakened state. The two in front of him looked no better and judging from the amount of blood that was flowing from their wounds they'd bleed out if they didn't get any medical attention. The two men looked at each other for a moment before turning back to the Soldier member. The one with a cut in his abdomen rushed forward and tried to grab Jay as the other reached behind and grabbed a cylinder.

The 3rd class tried backstepping to keep out of the man's reach but the wound in his leg made it difficult to do so. Strong arms wrapped around his waist and his body became much heavier. The other masked man pressed a button while running towards the struggling pair. The cylinder had made a 'clink' sound that made Jay's eyes almost bulge out of his head when he recognized the sound; the sound of a grenade's fuse being ignited.

 _They're going to kill me along with themselves, I have to move!_

The Soldier member renewed his struggles to get away from the masked pair but his leg as well as the weight on his waist made it hard to move away from the other man. He didn't have much time, raising his sword he stabbed it deep into back of the man who was grabbing him's back. This anchored the masked man to that position and got him to slacken his grip on Jay's waist giving, the Soldier member wiggle room to push off his uninjured leg and step on the hilt of his sword.

Pushing with all of the strength he could at that moment, Jay jumped away as far as he could when the other masked man reached the sword and fuse went off. The explosion enveloped the pair of men and blew the Soldier member away with the sheer force. His body was thrown like a rag doll through the air until it hit the ground and roughly rolled to a stop on his back. He looked back to see the flames consume the bodies and turn them to ash.

 _Looks like I won. I think I'm going to lay here for a while and catch my breath._

That was the last thought Jay had before his eyelids became heavy and they began to close. However before they completely closed, he saw a red coat walk past him and the black boots were facing toward the remains of the two masked men.

"They held up well enough."

 **Hey guys, sorry for the long wait. I got my wisdom teeth removed and I've been out of it for a few days so I hope ya'll still reading. Please drop a review and a favorite, hopefully I can rock another update by next weekend.**


	8. Chapter 8: Home With A Family Waiting

Jay woke up with an ear splitting headache and that was only in his head, his body was screaming in protest as he attempted to sit up. Getting into a sitting position, the 3rd scanned his surroundings to see he was in a bedroom. The furniture was simple yet had a welcoming feeling, there was a dresser across from him with a nightstand next to him. The walls had portraits on them that seemed to be pictures of either a tree or a family of three.

Throwing the sheets of his body, Jay got to his feet and stretched his back as well as his leg to see that he was wearing just shorts. His chest had bandages as he looked down to see his leg was also bandaged. Walking up to a portrait the 3rd focused on the family seeing as it was the only source of information he had right now.

There was a brown haired man tan skinned man with a fairer skinned woman who had jet black hair. Between them was a boy who seemed to inherit his father's hair color while having his mother's skin. The picture showed them all being happy in front of what was probably a farm based on the rows of trees and crops. Jay was about to turn away from the photo when he took one last glance at the boy and stopped. Leaning in closer to study the boy's face, he noted the baby fat as well as the smile that seemed to be arrogant. The 3rd's mind connected the thoughts in lightning speed.

He _knew_ that smile, he _hated_ that smile; he spent hours in a helicopter with that smile.

This was a picture of Soldier 1st class Genesis when he was a child.

As he thought that, he heard the door open. Turning his head, there was a thin older black haired woman with brown eyes wearing a green floral dress with red roses on it standing in the doorway. "I'm glad you're awake, when you brought here you'd already lost a large amount of blood. That was only yesterday and now you're on your feet, I guess Soldier really beefed you young men up, don't they?"

Her voice was aged yet seemed extremely kind and patient, she sounded like a doting mother. Not wanting to be rude Jay walked up and nodded his head in thanks. "I appreciate you caring for me ma'am, is there anyway I can repay you?" The woman laughed with no mocking intent and put a hand on the 3rd's shoulder.

"There's no need for you to repay me, I helped you because it was the right thing to do and not for a reward. Now come along, you need to get dressed and get something to eat; and I will not take no for an answer." It was as if Sephiroth had commanded him that he followed her without resistance at her firm tone. As he walked down the hallway, he could hear some singing coming from downstairs.

 _In the trees of Banora_

 _Apples bloom when they need_

 _A very special fauna_

 _Many come to see_

The short song was interrupted when whoever was singing heard Jay and the woman stepping down the stairs. "Is our guest awake honey? I just finished making breakfast." The voice was booming yet it was very jovial.

When the Soldier member rounded the corner, he saw a giant of a man. He was round yet not fat, his face had wrinkles as well as had his sparse white hair slicked back. His eyes were grey and lit up like the fourth of July when they walked in. Depositing the scrambled eggs from the pan he was using to the open plate that was displayed with more plates filled with breakfast food. After, he dropped the pan in the sink and walked up to the woman giving her a kiss on the cheek as well as a hug.

He then turned to Jay with his hand out and an arm on the woman's shoulders. "Good morning, my name is Jeffrey and this is my wife Tabitha, we were worried about you last night. Your uniform needed quite a few stitches to be mended, your back would have them too if the wound was a bit deeper."

The 3rd reached over and firmly shook the man's hand while nodding his head in thanks again. "Thank you for taking care of me, is there any way I can repay you?" Tabitha had pout on her face for a moment before going back to her kindly smile, Jeffrey on the other hand laughed loudly at the question before clapping a hand on the 3rd's shoulder.

"There's no need for that, we helped you because we wanted to and not for a reward. Now there is something I do want to ask you but that can wait until you change back into your uniform. Look on the table in the living room, we'll wait until you finish to start breakfast." Jay nodded then went back into the living room he walked past going to the kitchen. On the coffee table was his uniform neatly folded with his boots on the floor and his sword on top of the pile.

Picking the pile up, he hurried up the stairs back to the room he woke up in and began putting his Soldier uniform on. He didn't want to keep the very nice couple waiting so when he finished, he jogged down the stairs and walked in the kitchen to see that the two of them were indeed waiting on him. Jeffrey noticed Jay standing in the doorway and waved him over to the empty seat in front of him.

For a moment, the older couple weren't there, instead his parents were sitting in their places.

" _Jay sweetie, breakfast is ready come down here." The sound of running reverberated around the house as a small boy walked into the kitchen and pulled a chair out. With some effort the small boy lifted himself into the chair that seemed to be almost taller than him then scooted it so he was closer to the table._

" _Mom can I have ten pancakes please, I promise to eat them all this time." Before his mother had a chance to answer, his dad reached over and ruffled the boy's hair then took the stack of pancakes and only putting three on Jay's plate._

" _No way last time you tried, you got a tummy ache so you can work yourself up big guy. I on the other hand…" He proceeded to fill his plate up with pancakes, probably the ten he denied his son. "Need my energy for the day so I need a bigger breakfast." Jay's mother laughed at the little pout_

The 3rd stiffly sat down at the table, how long had it been since he's done this kind of thing? Was it in his previous life, before those monsters turned everything in his life to ash? He shook himself out of his thoughts when Tabitha tapped him on the shoulder, turning his head to see her he was starting to focus his ears.

"Darling are you alright, you had a far off expression just now." Jay didn't want to lie but at the same time he didn't want to talk about how the two of them in their short time made him remember his parents. Choosing to avoid that topic, he chose to pretend he was fine instead of burdening these very nice people.

"Yes I'm alright just got a little on my mind. I really appreciate the two of you helping me but I should be going, I didn't mean to intrude." The couple looked at each other for a moment with an eyebrow raised before looking back to the Soldier.

"You're not intruding, in fact we're glad you're here. There's actually something we wanted to ask you when you woke up." Jeffrey looked past Jay with a wistful expression on his face, causing the 3rd to turn around and follow his eyesight. On a counter in the living room there was another picture of the family of three that was next to one of those weirdly shaped trees outside. In the picture, Genesis seemed to be holding an award of some kind with his parents behind him on each shoulder.

 _They want to know about Genesis._

"We wanted to ask if you've met our son, Genesis? We've heard some rumors that he was in town but he hasn't visited us, we were wondering if you came with him." Jay turned back to see the two of them focused on him, with baited anticipation in their eyes. The 3rd thought about his answer carefully, he was under the impression that Genesis left him here for his parents to care for him. That may have happened but apparently the old couple hadn't seen their wayward son. Part of him felt he should say that Genesis was in Banora now because of how helpful they were and for them bringing back a good memory from his childhood that he'd suppress along with the night he lost it all.

Another part of him remembered his loyalty to Shinra and by extension; Genesis who didn't seem to want to be seen by his parents. For a moment, he weighed the two lives he had; the one before that night or the one after. Eventually his life in Soldier suppressed his previous life and Jay answered with a sincere expression.

"I've met Genesis many years ago, I did not come here with him though. There should be another Soldier member here though, I thought he was the one to bring me to you." The old couple's faces fell instantly and Jay could feel a stabbing guilt in his heart for lying to them. Jeffrey tried placing a fake smile on his face to lift the spirits in the room but everyone could tell that there was a palpable air of disappointment between the three of them.

"Well, at least you met him. Maybe he is here and is just doing important Shinra business. If you do find him, will you send him our way? We miss our boy and would love to see him." Jay nodded strongly. The memory of his parents had been surpressed for so long and these nice people bringing them back brightened his day immensely. He couldn't see his parents ever again, but Genesis could.

These people seemed so nice to him, the 3rd knew that people could portray themselves differently to achieve their goals; but the Rhapsodos couple felt genuine. He intended to ask the 1st to visit his parents but if he refused, Jay felt it was his duty to convince him otherwise. Tabitha regained her smile as she held her hand out to Jeffrey, who eagerly accepted the gesture before the latter extended his hand to the Soldier member.

The corners of Jay's mouth slowly twitched up as he grasped the hand and put his head down so Jeffrey could say grace. All the while, he was remembering his parents doing the same thing every morning for breakfast.

 **Hello my loyal readers it's Darkness's Blade and I'd like to apologize for the long wait for this slow chapter. I've been going through some patches in my life but i think i can say I settle everything out. Does this mean i'm going to be updating more often? I wanna say yes but who knows, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please review and tell your friends.**


	9. Chapter 9: Loveless Prologue

Jay walked out of the nice home to see a windmill next to the farm as well as some winding trees that covered the path heading toward town. As he was leaving he looked back to the crop line to see that it stretched for what seemed like a mile in its own plot of land behind the house. The Soldier member was just now realizing how large the house was when he looked at it from the outside.

It was an estate rather than a house. Tabitha and Jeffrey looked fortunate but he didn't consider them to be _that_ fortunate. Pushing the thoughts out of his head, Jay reasoned that he needed to return to the sight of the attack and assess if those men from yesterday were indeed dead. He also needed to find the local blacksmith to commission a sword or two.

Rotating his shoulders and stretching his limbs, the Soldier member lightly started jogging toward the town so he could pass through and get to the cliffs. As he passed the gate at the entrance of town, he noticed how lively the place seemed in the morning. There were many people walking about and talking to each other with happy expressions on their face while they work and traded.

While he was on his way to complete his mission, part of him wanted to explore a bit of what Banora had to offer. So he slowed down his jog and walked along the edge of the town scanning to see the interactions of the people. As he looked around he saw a building with an anvil depiction on a wooden slab hanging from the top. Guessing that was the blacksmith, he made a beeline for that building while avoiding the busy goings of the townspeople.

He walked into the shop, to hear the rhythmic sound of a hammer striking the anvil. The shop had a large rotating contraption that held an arsenal of different swords on each indention. Next to it was a box that seemed to be filled with different materials used to make more weapons. Following the sound of the hammer hitting an anvil, Jay found a large old man with a typical hairstyle for a blacksmith; bearded and bald.

The Soldier member tried to grab the man's attention but his focus on the task at hand held fast and he didn't acknowledge the 3rd's existence until he placed the hot blade into a bucket of water next to him. "What do you want?" The gruff voice did not even attempt hide the dislike the large man had for the Soldier member. Jay raised an eyebrow at the man before remembering what he represented.

Shinra wasn't the most popular outside Midgar and Soldier members were their glorified dogs, so they got very little love when they were seen. Jay didn't really mind the looks he got but it made him remember the looks his village had when Shinra arrived. Then he goes and joins Shinra and become one their military dogs, now that he thinks about it; what would his parents say? Shaking his head and clearing his thoughts, the Soldier member focused on the unpleasant blacksmith in front of him.

"I'd like to commission a custom order." The burly man frowned deepened before turning to his anvil. "You already got a sword, you trying to spend your fancy paycheck to get a cooler looking weapon?" The Soldier member's face began to show frustration as he said his words with choked aggression. "This sword isn't unique to me, to have one not made just for you would make you unable to meet your full potential. Many may think a weapon is just a weapon but I don't, a weapon usually decides between victory and defeat, one that isn't one with you will likely choose defeat."

The blacksmith raised an eyebrow before sitting back. His face showed he was considering the Shinra dog's words. He expected the kid to be some hero wannabe that always looked for money and fame but the way he spoke showed volumes of discipline as well as insight. The blacksmith had made many weapons for privileged pretty boys and all of them disgusted him, the kid standing in front of him however seemed to have a good head on his shoulders.

Nodding a bit to himself, to at least hear the kid out; the blacksmith stood up before gesturing for the kid to follow as he walked towards the back of his shop. Jay followed obediently as they walked deeper into the shop occasionally side stepping a stray sword or box in the way. The blacksmith went through a door that appeared to be to the store room. Following him inside, the Soldier member saw the blacksmith tear off the lids to a few wooden boxes. When he peered inside there were metal ingots stacked perfectly in one another, there were similar boxes next to it probably indicating there were more than one type of metal.

"First we need to pick a metal, find one you are most in tune with." The blacksmith leaned against the wall as he watched Jay go to the first box. When he picked up the ingot, he instantly felt how heavy it was, the metal was dirty yet sturdy but it would probably make a weapon to slow to use. Placing it down he went over to another box and picked up an ingot that was lighter than the one before yet had many chips along the surface. This metal would make a very fast blade yet it'd be fragile. Not ideal but he leaned more towards this one. He checked though the other boxes and noted several deficiencies among them which would make them unable to him. The only two he'd even consider using would be the first two metals he found, there was only one problem; to utilize his particular style he needed a sword that was light yet durable.

Sephiroth's Masamune was an ideal weapon for this style which he derived off his mentor's but the sword itself was quite heavy. Jay wanted a weapon that was lighter and could hold up to multiple swings from the Masamune to achieve an advantage in speed over Sephiroth. The two metals he would use were lacking one that the other had, so the obvious thought would be to combine them. Unfortunately, combining metals took even more time to smith which he doubt he'd be in Banora when it finished.

"How long would it take for you to graft these two metals into one sword?" The blacksmith pushed his tongue against his inner lower lip in thought for a moment doing the calculations in his head. "Mmm...I wanna say five days but money on it being a week." Jay sighed, there was no way he'd be in Banora for an entire week. He almost considered telling the man to forget it but a scream from outside interrupted his train of thought. Rushing through the blacksmith shop leaving the man in his dust, the Soldier member burst through the doors to see blue dogs with a red tail coming from the base of their head terrorizing people. There were already a few dead bodies on the ground as the hounds growled and followed the townspeople.

Forgetting his injuries, Jay sprung into action cleaving two hounds in half as they went after a man against the central area of town. Telling him to go away, he faced the remaining hounds that turned their attention instantly towards him. Getting into a ready position, he faced the nearest hound that took a leap at him. Sidestepping before leaving a shallow cut in its midsection, Jay rolled to the side to avoid another lunge then bring his sword horizontally to block a pounce. On its hind legs, the hound was roughly his height and had some weight but not enough to stop the Soldier member from kicking it off and turning to decapitate another hound.

The canine's blood stunk of something unnatural as if they were chemicals instead of blood, as if someone created these things. Tucking that tidbit of info away in his head, the Soldier member used his the flat of his blade to bat off two hounds that jumped at him. Hearing the sounds of growling behind him, Jay jumped as high as he could to get a layout of the battlefield.

The hounds numbered in the early teens and half of them were going for the townspeople while the other went to him. He needed to focus on protecting the people of Banora first before they took too many lives. From this position he could've launched an elemental attack if he'd packed any materia before this mission. Cursing his haste, the Soldier member angled his body to fall faster and aimed towards the few hounds going for the people.

The other hounds seemed to understand Jay's plan as the half the went for the people switched with the ones that went after him. A child's cry resounded through the town as the young man's heart stopped for a moment, as he saw two dogs pounce for a young boy. Changing targets Jay sprinted toward the child forgetting completely about the other hounds, pushing his body to make up the distance was all he could think about.

 _It's too far away, I don't know if I can make it._

When he realized that the hounds would reach the boy before he did, time seemed to slow down for him. The scene warped in front of him and replaced the boy with a childhood version of himself next to his parents' bodies. Jay remembered Sephiroth saving him just in time and he followed in his footsteps so he could do the same thing but he knew that after so many years he's still useless.

The hound spontaneously burst into flames as it neared the boy leaving the two of them shocked. All the hounds seemed to stop moving as the sound of footsteps reached their ears.

"When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end. The goddess descends from the sky. Wings of light and dark spread afar. She guides us to bliss, her gift everlasting." Jay turned to see Genesis with his head bowed enough he couldn't see his eyes, a posture that seemed at odds with his usual behavior.

"I see the war of the beasts have begun, far too early but it cannot be helped. The world's end shall come soon, whether we like it or not." Before Jay could say anything, a glow engulfed the 1st class's hand. It began to grow brighter and brighter until Genesis lifted his hand above his head letting the intense light blanket the center of town. The last thing the 3rd class could remember was hearing the snap of the 1st fingers as he lost consciousness.

* * *

As soon as Sephiroth returned to Midgar, he strided toward Lazard's office with a purpose. The company's employees seemed to sense his urgency and opted to clear out of his way. When he reached the office, he knocked softly three times. While he may be an infamous and invaluable member of Soldier, Sephiroth always had a semblance of respect when addressing the director.

"Come in." The legendary Soldier hero opened the door before closing it and stepping into the empty office to see Lazard typing on his desktop computer. The director promptly stopped whatever he was doing to address the 1st with all of his attention on him. Sephiroth was never one for random visits, if he wanted something it'd be better to listen. Seeing that he had the director's full attention the Soldier hero began speaking.

"You said you would be for a few days, I expected a week but it's only been 3 days. Did you find what you were looking for?" Lazard could tell from the pensive look on his face that the Soldier hero was trying to choose his words carefully.

"We've been receiving reports of Shinra patrols disappearing in Wutai, even those with Soldier members attached to them. I went to investigate the area and uncover the reason of their disappearance. It seems that Wutai has been experimenting and created anti-Soldier creatures. They're very brutish yet strong, I could easily subdue them but a 3rd class would have little chance. Also we've grossly underestimated the Crescent troops of Wutai, the one I encountered was able to block my strikes as well as escape from me the moment he was out of visibility."

Lazard supposed this could be cause for Sephiroth to be focused on Wutai but something in his gut told him the anti-Soldier creatures and the Crescent troops weren't what he was thinking about."Is there more?"

"The Crescent warrior I spoke to hinted that someone was supporting them, I believe however it was helped create the creatures." The director raised an eyebrow expecting more but when he got a blank stare from the 1st class he concluded that was all he had. "If that's all you had then why leave Wutai, I'm sure you could've found more information there instead of in Midgar.?"

"I need to go through the data room, there's something I needed to physically see. Also I believe Wutai is planning to combat Shinra so warning and properly preparing our forces takes priority. While I was in Wutai, I uncovered a hidden base which I requested for them to secure and send all data to the Midgar so when it gets here I can personally go through it." The director nodded and with that Sephiroth promptly turned on his heel heading toward the door. Before he could get to it, he heard Lazard speak.

"How long do you think we have before we have a full on war with Wutai?" The Soldier hero turned his head to the side without looking at the director. "The war has already begun we just didn't know about it." With that Sephiroth left the office and entered the elevator to ride down to the Soldier floor. If he stayed a bit longer, he would've seen the message the director just received from the forward base in Wutai.

 _ **We've sent the data found at the underground base on a chopper to Midgar, however we've lost contact with the troops who stayed to secure the base. When we sent additional units to investigate the situation, they found that the underground base has been buried, as well as the Wutai forces beginning to move out from Fort Tamblin.**_

 _ **We've lost contact with over half our patrols in Wutai when Sephiroth left.**_

Sephiroth exited the elevator and could hear the sounds of the simulator going. Curiosity getting the better of him, the Soldier hero walked to the screen that showed the simulation.

In the middle of the desert, Angeal and his protege-Zack were sparring. Of course the 1st was barely trying, he only correcting the 3rd's form as they clashed. Angeal was using a generic standard issue Shinra sword as usual so he could avoid using his prized weapon, the Buster Sword, that he carried on his back. In all the time Sephiroth had known Angeal he'd only seen him use that weapon a handful of times and each one of those times all it required was one swing from that weapon.

He always wanted to see how much force was behind that blade but Angeal never used it in training, and even if Sephiroth attacked him out of nowhere, the former would likely dodge or use whatever sword he'd have on hand. Pushing that thought into the back of his head he watched 3rd try an attack from above only for Angeal to block it with steadfast guard. His form was perfect when he disengaged their blade lock before spinning and thrusting the hilt into the 3rd's chest. Zack instantly crumpled as his mentor stood up straight with a calculating gaze.

"When you're in the air, your maneuverability is severely limited, you may be able to use more force when swinging down but when fighting an opponent who has a stable position this could leave you open. Stay close to the ground as if you're gliding across it, you'll be able to change direction if need be." Zack staggered to his feet with difficulty and charged forward again taking long strides and before he reached his mentor he leaped forward.

Angeal eyes widened at bit at the sudden attack but was able to sidestep it and before he could capitalize on the 3rd's wide open position with a swing; the latter used one foot to stop his leap and pushed off his other to jump over the attack. He jumped high enough to let the blade barely touch his feet then lifted his foot up like a baseball pitcher before swinging it down throwing all his weight into an overhead attack. When Zack's blade hit Angeal's the latter was surprised to be thrown back a couple feet from the attack.

"How was that?" The 3rd's face had an expecting look on his face, hoping for his mentor's approval. Angeal saw the look and chuckled a bit shaking his head side to side.

"Ever the puppy. You did excellent, we should take a break before getting back into it." Zack threw his arms in the air cheering after receiving the praise. Angeal had an amused expression on his face watching his protege, the two seemingly oblivious to the Soldier hero watching them both.

Sephiroth couldn't help but think of Jay, the little kid he picked up years ago that grew into a Soldier member. Angeal was undoubtedly a father figure to Zack but for Sephiroth he felt that his protege saw him as a hurdle more than an example. Which was well and good but the two haven't even had a proper training session **together,** the 3rd had been working on his own trying to imitate the 1st. He was very talented to able to keep up with Zack before going through the Soldier program.

 _Perhaps I can get him for a session tomorrow, just to see what he can really do._

Sephiroth pulled his phone out and scrolled through the menus before selecting Jay's profile. He raised an eyebrow when it showed that he was already on a mission in Banora and it was with Genesis.

 _Looks like he's already starting his Soldier career which is good, but why go with Genesis? If i remember correctly he can't stand him. Well I guess there's nothing I can do except wait._

* * *

Jay's consciousness started to return to him and the first thing he registered in his head was the sound of helicopter blades going. Forcing his eyes to open, he could see that he was strapped down in a seat. Looking to his left toward the window, he could see that the sky was dark meaning hours had passed since he saw Genesis. Rubbing his head he looked across from him and could see the 1st class with his legs crossed looking outside the window.

"Awake I see, for a moment i was beginning to wonder if my Flare spell had done some permanent damage." Jay then remembered what happened before he blacked out, Genesis had appeared out of nowhere and casted a spell. With the level of power that the 1st possessed when he compared it to the level that hellhounds were, he knew that they were probably destroyed. However there was one thing that puzzled the 3rd, whenever someone used Materia they controlled the effect of the ability.

So when he casted the spell why was he affected, if he had been then that meant Genesis included him in his targeting. While their relationship was more than strained, he didn't think that neither would attack one another. So why did he do so? A thought then occurred to him, the people what happened to them? Apparently his facial expression showed concern as Genesis could already assume what the 3rd was thinking of.

"The people are fine, when I wiped out the hounds the townspeople came back to square. You of course, were unconscious so I had to carry you. A blacksmith asked about you and the weapon you wanted to be made, I told him to do whatever he thought best and that you'd return in a week as he said it'd take that long to complete." Jay narrowed his eyes when he still haven't figured out why Genesis attacked him in the first place.

"Why did you knock me unconscious?" Genesis slid his eyes over to the 3rd with an unreadable expression. "There was no reason for us to remain in Banora, the mission had been completed. Also, you disobeyed my orders and engaged two suspects which resulted in you being injured and they were nowhere to be found. I didn't need you to object to our departure of Banora so I took out your choice entirely out of the equation. That is why I decided to knock you unconscious, because I don't tolerate insubordination when it jeopardizes the mission."

Hearing his reasoning made logical sense for a Soldier 1st class to think, however it wasn't something he think Genesis would believe. While he was raised in Shinra, he read the 1st mission reports; the red head had little love for someone governing his action always doing things his way. So why did he change his attitude in the opposite direction, was it perhaps because of Banora being in danger?

Regardless, what happened had already happened so there was no point in getting upset over a 1st asserting that disobedience would not be tolerated in Soldier. Tucking that little bit of info into his brain, Jay remembered what Genesis parents asked of him. "What about your family, you should visit them, they really miss you."

The 1st's fist twitched for a moment that most would miss except for Jay, who chose not to say anything. "There is no reason for me to see them, they are part of a past that I don't need or want to go back to." The 3rd could empathize with that sentiment, it's what he did for the last few years but from what he experienced with the old couple he couldn't understand why the 1st didn't want to see them. Deciding not to press the issue, Jay sat back into his seat more and crossed his arms. "Some would kill for a chance to see their family again."

 _I know I would._

Genesis scoffed, before facing the 3rd. "You shouldn't stuff your nose into matters that don't concern you, even if you're the might Sephiroth's lap dog." The look in the 1st's eyes held an underlined threat that Jay would be foolish to not heed. There was a change in Genesis that the 3rd now just realized and it put him on guard the entire trip back to Midgar. Before, the 1st enjoyed him being around so he could tease, now it seemed his fuse was a lot shorter than usual.

 _What happened to him Banora that changed him so much?_

 **Hello everyone here's another chapter after so long I hope you are all enjoying the fanfiction. for those of you who played the game I guess you can guess what's happening with Genesis as well as the situation in Wutai, but just because you have an IDEA of what might happen doesn't mean you'll know. Please review and show me some love**


	10. Chapter 10: Unexpected Starts

The chopper arrived back in Midgar with the two Soldier members getting off and watching the aircraft leave. Jay turned to leave the roof to return to his quarters but was cut off by the 1st stepping in front of him not even having the decency to fully face him. "You will not mention the enemy combatants you contended with until more information can be found on them." The 3rd thought about asking why but remembered that Genesis was now in no mood to entertain any sort of disobedience.

 _I'm sure he'd find out if I told anyone else._

Deciding it was best to just follow orders the 3rd nodded and watched the red head walk away. Having no desire to share the elevator with the 1st, Jay decided to stay on the roof for a few more minutes while looking through his phone. He was surprised to see there was a new message from Sephiroth a few hours ago. Selecting it and opening it he wasn't surprised to see it was short and to the point.

 _When you return from your mission meet me in the data room._

Checking to see the time was 9:17, he was certain the 1st was still there attending to his own devices. Jay's body had been relieved of its soreness from earlier as he walked to the elevator and pressed the button to go down to the Soldier floor. On his way down, he couldn't help but think about his two attackers from yesterday.

They were extremely agile, that was obvious to see with the way they bob and weaved through all his attacks. Their speed was also noteworthy as they could attack then jump just out of reach of any of his counterattacks. It was as if they were both Soldier members from the abilities they've shown which would be more than a match for an average Soldier 3rd class. Luckily for him, he excelled when it came to combat. The whole ride back, he tried to remember what Genesis had said before he fell unconscious, however it was all still a blank to him.

The elevator came to a halt on the Soldier floor breaking his train of thought, walking through the doors he made a beeline straight for the data room. The sooner he found out what Sephiroth wanted the sooner he could call it a day. When Jay arrived at the door, he knocked a few times to alert the 1st of his presence. Hearing no answer, the brown haired young man opened the door to see the Soldier hero hunched over some reports.

To most it would seem that Sephiroth hadn't noticed his protégé but Jay knew better, he was _always_ aware of his surroundings. He was proved right when he took a few steps before the 1st addressed him. "Enjoy your mission with Genesis?" The response the 3rd had was out of his mouth before he could stop or think about it.

"The guy is still a fucking dick."

Most higher ups in Shinra would be appauled at his foul language, Sephiroth might've reprimanded him had it been they were in public or he was speaking about another matter. However, this time the silver haired hero chuckled for a bit, finding the dislike his protégé had for Genesis amusing.

"Well then I guess it'll please you to remember that he's not the one mentoring you, if he was you'd two would probably kill each other at the first disagreement."

 _Ain't that the truth._

"Speaking of mentoring, we haven't had the chance to do so at all. I assume that after your mission you wish to retire for the night, we can meet in the morning for our first training session; any objections?" Jay shook his head no, inwardly he'd been disappointed to find out the 1st was on a mission so they couldn't train. Now that they were both back they could get started which excited him, but he kept his cool.

"Tomorrow meet me here at 10am, I expect you'll mentally prepare yourself sufficiently. You're dismissed." The 3rd nodded and walked away as the Solder hero was still looking through a few reports.

* * *

Genesis strides straight for the research department, looking for one professor with a murderous aura that warded off any Shinra employees. When he walked through the doors and saw his target, the 1st took a few steps before grabbing the man by the coat, spinning him around and pinning him to the console he was working on.

"You sent them to my home, people are dead because of your experiments Hollander." The round professor was afraid in his eyes but managed to calm down his demeaner as he put his hands up in a peaceful manner. "They needed to be far enough from Shinra that no one would ask questions and it was convenient because of the lab I have there. They were ordered to stay away from the village, their only directive was to engage any they'd view hostile."

The 1st shoved Hollander before turning around and quickly scanning the room again before speaking. "They were also supposed to be competent enough to engage a Soldier member and take them out. A 3rd engaged them and came out the victor, I'm certain he got a good look at them. As least you programmed them to leave no evidence." The professor rubbed his collar with a disbelieving expression.

"There's no way a mere 3rd class Soldier member could engage one of the subjects and survive." Genesis took out his phone and tapped a few buttons on it before handing it to the professor to view. On the screen was a recording of Jay facing off against the two subjects and defeating them with difficulty. "As you can see, he is no mere 3rd class."

Hollander looked panicked for a moment as Genesis picked his phone from his slack fingers. "Did he see their faces?! If he has then, he could connect this back to us and we're nowhere near where we need to be in the plan. He could blow all of it, if he knows!" The 1st didn't look worried but the seething expression on his face had not lessened.

"He doesn't know anything about them, he passed out after the fight and the hounds that were sent into the village were completely incinerated with him unconscious. I ordered him to speak about this with no one, he'll likely listen to that command however we must push up the time table. How soon until you can mass produce the subjects?" Hollander went back to the console he was working at then typed in a few commands to look up a menu.

"A few more weeks, from scratch but if we had live volunteers I can augment them in a few hours." Genesis looked thoughtful for a moment, seemingly working out something in his head. "How many subjects do you have in Wutai?" Hollander typed in a few more commands on the console again.

"A few dozen." Genesis nodded as he walked toward the door that led out the room. "Send word to Wutai to capture any Soldier members alive. Also, when you make the necessary arrangements relocate to Wutai and prepare for a shipment of volunteers. Finally, I want you to prepare a Project S trial run for a single subject." Hollander looked up from his console with a confused expression.

"Project S? None of the subjects can withstand the procedure, they breakdown when exposed to the modified cells." The 1st stopped at the door and lazily turned his head to address the professor. "I know that it would take more than a mere subject, and as you saw he's no mere 3rd class."

* * *

The morning came quickly for the 3rd class as he got out of bed and readied himself for the day. Leaving his quarters at 8:30, he walked out of Shinra headquarters to a grocery store that was down the street. Walking into the store, Jay looked for the bakery section, so he could get himself a little sweet for the beginning of the day. After looking at the signs he finally found the bakery section.

There were rows and rows of bread and other assorted goods that all looked appetizing to eat. Wanting something quick and easy to carry, Jay decided to look for some type of doughnut he could put in a small bag to carry. Next to the register there was a glass cabinet that held an assortment of doughnuts from plain to covered in sprinkles with chocolate icing. Grabbing some plain ones, he went to the register and paid for them then headed toward the door, with one halfway in his mouth.

"You sure you can eat that without messing up your figure?" He easily recognized the voice behind him and he turned with a doughnut in his mouth to face the chestnut-haired woman. The first thing he noticed was that she wasn't in her usual suit, she was wearing a spaghetti strapped yellow shirt with tight blue jeans and white tennis shoes. She actually looked…nice without her suit on.

 _Never admitting that aloud._

Swallowing his pastry, he offered a shrug like he always did. "I can always work it off." Cissnei nodded with a smile as she slowly walked around him, looking at his uniform. "Morning snack before work?" The 3rd turned to keep her in front of him feeling a bit self-conscious at her gaze. "Yeah, didn't feel like getting a big breakfast so I got a quick snack, I'll probably eat a bigger meal later."

Jay watched her nod in understanding as he started think about how she always caught him unaware. He got that she was part of Shinra intelligence but that didn't mean she should be able to sneak up on him every time. Maybe he should give her a piece of her own medicine, it was childish in concept, but Jay thought why not. If he wanted to catch her the way she does him, he'd have to know where she was, unfortunately he knew next to nothing about her. So, before he could get his "revenge" on her he'd have to get to know her.

 _Now the question is, how do I go about doing that without her thinking I'm a creep._

"So, are you off today? You aren't wearing your suit." Cissnei stopped pacing around him and answered with her smile. "Soldier is being stingy with all the Shinra jobs, so I got the whole day off." Hearing she was off all day made him come up with an idea to get to know her.

"Well if you're free all day, you want to grab a bite to eat later after I get off?" If Sephiroth was out here, the 3rd would _never_ hear the end of it. The chestnut-haired woman raised an eyebrow with a coy expression. "Are you asking me out on a date? Looks like someone didn't read the rules about interwork relationships. They're prohibited." Cissnei finished her answer with a smile that would've crushed anyone else's heart, Jay on the other hand just felt extremely embarrassed.

Before he could say anything more, she started walking away, swaying her hips as she did. "But if you happen to be at the fountain in the middle of Midgar at 9 tonight, you could find someone willing to go out to eat." Jay's mouth dropped when he just realized what happened. She shot him down but made it so if he came it would be on her terms, she was good that was for sure.

 _More reason to stay on my toes when I'm around her._

Checking the time to see it was 9:30, he picked up a light jog to Shinra tower while stuffing the rest of the doughnuts in his mouth as he ran through the lobby and up the elevator. He managed to make it 5 minutes early to the data room before knocking and entering. The 1st was still reading reports, as if he never left the room.

"Looks like you're early." Closing the report, he was working on, Sephiroth led his protégé to the simulation room in silence. When they entered the room, he pulled his phone out and began scrolling through a few menus.

"Before you were indoctrinated into Soldier, I gave some thought as to the method I would use to better train you as efficiently as possible. I learned from experience over countless battles over the years, I simply can't input the same experience into you in a short time with normal methods. So, I requested the researchers to come up with a very specific simulation that would provide the best battleground for your training."

When he finished, the simulation room went completely white before green cubes appeared and started reconstructing a canyon. There were rock formations littered across the canyon, with high walls of earth on either side of the two Soldier members. When the cubes settled, the simulation looked complete. Drawing his sword, Jay got into ready position as he waited for his opponent to appear.

For some reason this made the 1st chuckle a bit, which made the 3rd raise an eyebrow. "There something I need to know?" Sephiroth only pressed one button on his phone and the cubes appeared again. They all started creating replicas of the standard issue Shinra sword, sticking out of the rocks all over the canyon. The distance between each one was about 3 meters, so they weren't too in the way of the Soldier members. The 1st reached into his pocket and tossed two restorative Materia towards Jay who caught them with his off hand.

The 3rd identified the Materia as a novice barrier and regen. "As I said before, I can't grant you the experience that I have simply because you haven't fought as long as I have or opponents that I've went up against. So instead of taking you on missions and letting you work your way up fighting monsters, you're going to fight me instead." Jay's eyes widened as he took a step back from the 1st as he quickly equipped the two Materia and got into a fighting stance with both hands on his hilt.

"Heh you didn't let me finish, I do not remotely expect you to win. I expect you to keep fighting me and refine your fighting style in the heat of the moment. The swords around us are only for you, I won't touch one; you obviously know it won't take me much effort to shatter your sword so while you fight me you must replace your weapon when needed. The barrier and regen Materia I gave you will be on the entire training session to increase your mental capacity. We will train until either you pass out from mental exhaustion or we go through each and every sword on this battleground. I suppose we would stop if you managed to defeat me or of course I end up killing you on mistake but those are extremely unlikely to happen. Now I know I don't have to say fight me with your full strength but just know if you don't…"

Jay blinked during the 1st's explanation, the Soldier hero was standing ten meters away from him. Now he was face to face with those eerie green catlike eyes. "…then you're going to end up with a lot scars even with those Materia." Maybe Sephiroth swung slower to give the 3rd a sporting chance to fight him, but the force behind his swings weren't so restrained. Jay managed to bring his sword up in time to meet the Masamune but when their blades made contact, the 3rd flew in the opposite direction.

 _I need to get my footing!_

Flexing his abs, Jay tried to push his legs behind him to dig his feet into the ground to stop his flight. However, before he could do so Sephiroth flew toward him again without hesitation. "Might want to cast those restorative spells now." Seeing the 1st preparing another swing, the 3rd put up his guard again and tensed his muscles waiting for the attack. Sephiroth swung his Masamune with tremendous force in a downward cut which resulted in the sword snapping in half and leaving a shallow cut on Jay's chest.

Clutching the burning sensation in his chest the 3rd dropped to a knee as Sephiroth appeared in front of him with his blade at his side. "Please don't tell me, this is all you have." Jay didn't answer as he called upon the regen Materia and felt his wound begin to close. With some of his strength restored, the 3rd threw his broken stump of a sword at his opponent before reaching with his other hand and grabbing a nearby weapon then attacked with it.

The 1st titled his head to avoid the weapon before blocking the attack then leaned into the blade lock so he was face to face with his protégé. The younger Soldier member had a strained expression on his face as he stared into the older one's eyes as he had a smirk on his lips. "Heh is that the best you can do?" After saying that Sephiroth pushed away Jay then flourished his Masamune in what seemed to be a taunt.

Grinding his teeth in frustration the 3rd casted barrier then grabbed another nearby sword with his off hand before running to engage the legendary Soldier member. Sephiroth was barraged by onslaught of slashes but had answer for everything Jay could throw at him. He then noticed his protégé took a wide swing that left him overextended at his right side, not wasting the opportunity he flicked his prized katana and would've cut into the 3rd's side had the barrier not been there.

Being thrown away again Jay could feel trickles of blood going down his body from tiny cuts that somehow the 1st made in 3 swings. Feeling the cuts heal, he rushed forward again with a strong right downward slash that Sephiroth blocked with little effort. Tensing his left arm, he aimed a strike for the 1st side only to met with the Masamune once again.

"You need to move much faster than that and be more inventive with your movements." Knocking away his protégé's sword with by spinning clockwise he dragged his katana along the ground as he spun in a 360-degree fashion then used the force from the movement to augment a strong uppercut strike. The move rewarded him with Jay's right sword breaking when he tried to block it and his body flying into the air. Not giving him a break, Sephiroth sent three arcs of compressed air from swinging his weapon.

Jay readied his sword as he managed to block all three arcs but froze when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Never take your eyes off your opponent." Another flash of white was all he saw as he futility tried taking a swing at the Soldier hero who responded with another downward slash that broke his weapon once again and left with a new large cut on his chest. The air zoomed past him as the 3rd hit the ground with a groan, his body was already worn from the brief battle they had.

 _So, this is how far our abilities were, I thought I could give him some competition. Even so, I'm not going down without a fight._

"That's three swords down, only about ninety-seven to go, think you can last?" Rolling over with a groan, Jay picked up another sword and used it as a crutch to get to his feet. The regen and barrier spell was broken with the last attack, so he casted it again only now feeling the mental strain. He pushed every thought of how much is body protested whenever he moved to the back of his mind and faced his mentor with a determined stare.

Sephiroth chuckled as he floated down and raised his Masamune. "Alright let's get down to business then." At the end of his statement the 3rd charged with a battle cry.

 **Hello there, hope you enjoyed this chapter, things are starting to move along into the storyline. Please read and review and stay tuned for the next chapter where Jay has a date with Cissnei XD.**


	11. Chapter 11: Before Crisis

Sephiroth stood over the prone form of his protégé as he looked around the battlefield at the broken fragments of swords he destroyed. The 3rd class had managed to get through 16 more swords before dropping from mental exhaustion, his form had improved to the point he could fight with a sword for a few minutes before breaking. The Soldier hero was pleasantly surprised how elated he felt, call him sadistic, but he actually enjoyed beating down the 3rd class. It's been a while since someone went against him multiple times knowing full well they'd lose but still trying to defeat him.

 _I wonder if Angeal enjoys this aspect also._

Pulling his phone out, he noted that it was around noon so they've been fighting around two hours. His protégé had only minor cuts due to the materia he had on hand and should be on his feet in a few hours after he regained consciousness but he couldn't just leave him here. Grabbing the back of the 3rd's uniform, he hefted the sleeping young man on his left shoulder while looking around for his weapon. Looking over to his left and seeing the shattered remains of Jay's weapon, he picked up the handle and inspected it, judging if it was reparable.

The blade was completely shattered with the guard and hilt littered with cracks, it looked like if he squeezed it'd be crushed in his palm. Deeming the weapon irreparable, Sephiroth turned it to dust in his hand with a small Energy materia spell. The 1st then pulled out his cell phone and accessed Shinra's Soldier files so he could find the apartment number his protégé resided. Seeing he lived in the Shinra building, the Soldier hero carried the man down the halls ignoring the looks of confusion thrown his way.

When he arrived to the specified door after exiting the elevator, Sephiroth looked down at the keypad that secured it. Frowning when he realized he didn't know the code the 1st thought for a moment of his next course of action. The door was a standard thick wooden door that he could've easily kicked in if he had to, but that would probably incur the wrath of the young man over his shoulder. Remembering that there was maintenance office for Soldier members who happened to forget their code at the end of the hall the 1st started walking toward the office.

 _Maybe next time I should bring some phoenix feathers to revive him quickly._

* * *

Soldier 3rd class Zack was back to back with his 1st class mentor in a mining cave surrounded my fiends of all kinds. To others the situation might've seemed bleak but for the energetic puppy he was excited to see his mentor in action. "So are you finally going to use that sword of yours?" There was no way he couldn't with the amount of monsters around them.

Angeal chuckled before cracking his knuckles and getting to a fighting stance with his hands in front of him. "No Zack, this battle does not require the Buster sword. Only when I'm defending my honor shall I draw my blade." The 3rd class pouted as if he was told he couldn't go outside to play before shrugging his shoulders. "Sooner or later i'm gonna see you use that thing."

His mentor looked over his shoulder with an amused expression before an idea popped in his head. "You really wanna see me use my sword right? Then I'll make a vow, if I feel you've become worthy of Soldier 1st class, I'll use my sword the very next moment I see you." When Zack heard that his eyes widened in excitement.

"For real?!"

 _Ever the puppy I see._

"Yeah just be as good as a 1st class and I'll show you. You can start by dealing with all these monsters." Saying those words made the 3rd class turn back to his enemies with a focused grin and a determined look in his eye. Angeal watched his protégé run off with a joyful battle cry and he knew in the back of his mind that he just signed all of those fiends death warrants.

* * *

Genesis had been called for a few minutes ago by Director Lazard where he was currently heading when he passed the company training room. For a moment he stopped at the door and for stood there a few moments. Deciding that Lazard could wait a few moments the brown haired man entered the room to look around inside.

The walls were covered in sleek grey panels that Genesis knew reflected images as well as produced variables for training sessions. It wasn't too long ago that the walls were covered in cracks and broken wires with the alarm going off every so often. The memory amused the 1st when he remembered it was him and Sephiroth who had caused the destruction.

They all originally agreed to spar, with Angeal and Genesis against Sephiroth on top of the Junon cannon. In the beginning it was relaxed enjoyable that the three had snuck away for some practice to hone their skills. However, the brown haired man knew that there were some things unsaid between him and the Soldier hero, words that could only be conveyed as they fought. So fight they did, but with greater intensity that usually accompanied them in real battles.

They had gotten carried away, and turned a sparring session into a full blown battle. Had Angeal not interfere, one of them might've been severely injured, the thought made Genesis rub his left shoulder where a mako infused blade had cut into it. He had tried so hard to defeat Sephiroth, faced him one on one with his own Rapier infused with fire runes to increase his power.

The 1st claimed that the world needed a new hero, that Sephiroth had fulfilled that role long enough and it was his turn to shoulder the role. The fight had begun with him matching his friend's cold intensity with his own fiery one, he had even trapped the Soldier hero in a core of flames that he was going to detonate. The explosion would've likely destroyed the training room, had Angeal not stepped in remembering they were only supposed to be sparring.

His response to that was to place his hand of mako energy to the honorable man's face and blasted him away. That exchange gave Sephiroth all the time he needed to cut through his prison of flames. The Soldier hero even managed to send some arcs of compressed air from swinging his Masamune, one of those arcs cutting through the thick metal cannon like it was butter.

Genesis avoided the attacks and landed on a stable part of the cannon while Sephiroth landed on a falling part of the cannon's barrel. For a moment they stared at one another as the Soldier hero's section fell. On the white haired man's face was a cold smirk that made his catlike green eyes look predatory. It was at that moment that the two had gone too far and now they weren't pulling any punches. When Sephiroth disappeared from his view a flash of silver erupted from the cannon's barrel and the man came flying with his Masamune flashing through the air.

The red coated man was able to catch the Soldier hero's attacks but they began to increase in speed and strength. So much so, that when Genesis jumped back instead of blocking the swing, the Masamune cut the thick metal of the cannon like butter. Sephiroth kept stepping forward with that cold smirk, swinging his katana with enough force to cut off sections of the giant Junon cannon as he advanced on his opponent.

When Genesis decided to finally block his opponents attacks, the white haired man sent him flying with a rough flourish. The red head hit a few structures before regaining his footing and growling a bit in anger that his concentration for his Rapier was broken from the blow he just recieved. Sensing something above him he looked up to see Sephiroth flying at him with his Masamune poised for a strike.

Reigniting his Rapier with mako energy, Genesis met Sephiroth's attack with equal force the two pushing against one another. The brown haired man had a look of frustration as the white haired man had that predatory smirk plastered on his face. With a huff the two separated before readying their final blow.

Genesis pushed more energy into his Rapier as Sephiroth flicked his Masamune so the blade edge was ready due to the fact he was using the back of the blade the entire time. With a push off their feet, the two flew at one another with the attempt to settle things once and for all.

It was at that moment that Angeal decided that enough was enough as he flew in between the two with a standard issue sword in one hand and the buster sword in the other. He blocked Genesis's Rapier with his standard issue sword and with his buster sword he blocked Sephiroth's Masamune.

That had managed to snap Sephiroth out of his trance as his cold smirk melted off his face, his eyes filled with a sliver of embarrassment. Genesis on the other hand had loathed the fact Angeal had interfered with their fight, so much so that he tried to power through his friend's sword. That had been his mistake, when he pushed his Rapier through Angeal's the blade snapped off and cut his shoulder.

That had ended their sparring as the training room couldn't withstand the assault and finally shutdown with wires hanging out of the ceiling. The brown haired man took a knee as the pain from the wound on his shoulder had burned with mako energy. His two friends were instantly worried, ready to rush to his side but Genesis being the proud man he was, waved them off.

Saying it was just a scrape, he picked up his Rapier then headed towards the infirmary. Not before reciting Loveless again to the Soldier hero as he passed, it might have been at that moment that the three of them would never be the same again. Despite what the other two might think, Genesis had made his choice, and he wasn't going to stop.

Turning away he walked out of the room and headed towards the Director's office, knowing that his days in Shinra were numbered. He couldn't discern if that made him happier or not, all he could do was continue his tasks and play his part. Whether his friends could find it in their hearts to forgive him he couldn't say but there was one thing the 1st knew for sure.

 _There WILL be a new hero._

* * *

Jay almost flew out of his bed as he jolted awake, not hindered by the comforter he was laying on. Looking down at his clothes he wonders why he was still dressed but then it all came back to him, the training session with Sephiroth. He managed to work his way through some more swords but the mental exhaustion made the training session blurry, the only thing he could remember vividly were the first three swords his mentor had shattered.

The 3rd knew he did indeed pass out but if that was the case how did he end up back in his room? Had the 1st carried him there all the way from the training room? The thought was unappealing as it conveyed that he wasn't strong enough to withstand Sephiroth's instruction. Checking his pockets for his phone, he noticed the time was 8:17 and that he had a message from the 1st. Opening his phone he skimmed through the short message.

 _Impressive for your first training session, you've performed better than I expected nethertheless there's so much more to improve on. These training sessions will be a monthly event to gauge your progress without injuring your body. On Monday after your duties you will meet me in the training room where we will run through simulations._

Jay honestly wasn't expecting that his mentor would use the word impressive, the improvement bit was completely expected but hearing that he did better than what the 1st thought was a welcome confidence boost. Closing his phone, he looked down at his uniform to see numerous cuts all over, when he pulled his sweater off and unhooked his shoulder pads, he could see the scars that littered his arms.

 _He did say I'd get some new scars._

Knowing he'd probably had to get the uniform stitched up, he shed his clothes then began checking all of his pockets to make sure he didn't lose anything. He fingers found something in his front pocket, lifting the object to inspect it, the 3rd was met with the card Cissnei had given him with her phone number on it.

He remembered putting the card with inside his flip phone because he didn't have the mind to trash it after copying down her number. It was at that moment that his latest meeting with her flooded in his mind, they were going to meet in forty three minutes! Rushing into the shower the 3rd got in a quick five minute shower, after doing so he looked in the mirror and straightened his features. Once he was through, Jay briskly walked to his closet and began rifling through some of the clothes he had acquired over the years he was in Shinra.

He doubted they were going anywhere high class to eat so he shouldn't need to dress so formally. He picked a few casual clothing going from buttoned up shirts to regular tee shirts. On his third outfit he threw out a thought occurred to him.

 _Why am I caring so much?_

The entire reason he was going out to eat with her was to find out more about her and get even with her for always popping up around him. It was an extremely childish notion that he normally would _never_ consider acting on but here was doing so. In addition, she mentioned that relationships in Shinra where prohibited. Now that he thought about it, that wasn't entirely true, the restriction only applied to military members of Shinra because of the idea that they could in theory jeopardize the mission.

If Soldier member had to leave their comrade to complete the mission then that operative should do so without hesitation. Sure, there'd be a rescue attempt but if it came between the mission and that one individual the mission would _always_ take priority. Jay knew those rules and would probably follow them without hesitation, there were test during his training that required him to sabotage his own teammates to succeed.

He did so without batting eye, multiple times in fact, this distanced himself from the other candidates. To him, he justified that his teammates couldn't be competent enough to eliminate that risk. In hindsight, Jay could see himself acting like he was superior to the other candidates due to the fact he'd spend all of his time trying to emulate his mentor. He had barely any respect for the other candidates as well as his instructors, so distancing himself from them was quite easy.

He did however have respect for Zack, despite how unprofessional he may have seen, the young man knew how to capitalize on mistakes. He rolled his shoulder at the memory, remembering how the puppy dislocated it before pinning him on the ground with it. Now thinking of his friend he wondered if he could leave Zack in enemy territory if ordered to or if the young man would leave him if the situation arised.

This line of thinking was broken when his phone vibrated. Jay reached over and checked it expecting a message. It turned out that his battery was at fifteen percent. His eyes drifted over the time to see it was 8:38, bringing his mind back to why he was even going to see her. He was being childish trying to get back at her and they couldn't be in relationship _if_ that was what he wanted.

 _I shouldn't go…_

Two minutes passed and he was walking out his room with a black hoodie and some loose blue jeans with his standard issued boots.

 _I'm just going to get something to eat with someone I know, nothing off about that. Even if she looked nice when she wasn't wearing her suit._

Jay wanted to squash the part of his brain that made that last comment, already finding himself picking up a light jog to ensure that he wouldn't be late.

 **Hey guys I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I do hope you guys look forward to Jay's night. It'd be so fucked up if I let Cissnei stand him up XD maybe I will... FIND OUT!**

 **P.S. REVIEW PLEASE.**


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